


Don't Fear the Reaper

by spirithorse



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Horror, Alternate Universe - Movie Fusion, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-02-18
Updated: 2011-04-05
Packaged: 2017-10-15 18:04:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 83,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/163452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spirithorse/pseuds/spirithorse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yugi is a reaper, one who separates the souls from the body at the moment of death. Yami is a man who can see and talk to ghosts. Yugi is sent to the town of Fairwater to investigate a recent increase in deaths and find out more than he ever wanted to. Based on the movie the Frighteners.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: All Our Times Have Come

**Author's Note:**

> Dedicated to Shamise, who let me adopt this plot bunny.

**Prologue: All Our Times Have Come  
**

The woman clutched her son and wailed, rocking back and forth as she held his limp body close to hers. The men of the group looked around nervously, glancing between the woman and the shallow hole that they had dug in the ground, waiting for the moment when the woman would relinquish her hold on her offspring. They had to move quickly if they wanted the spirit of the young man to remain behind and not follow them to their next camp. If it did, then the hunting would be bad, disease would follow them everywhere because the spirit would get angry. They looked to their leader, the man hesitating for a moment before giving a slight flick of his fingers, the motion enough to settle the rest of the clan.

They could wait, if just a little longer.

After all, this woman more than most needed time to morn. This had been her last living son, and then he had met with misfortune on the hunt; the deer had been dead, but had jerked at the last moment, driving the point of one of its antlers right into the young man's stomach. He had lived long enough to be brought home and die in his mother's arms. It was better than what his two brothers had gotten; one trampled in a stampede and the other lost to disease. It seemed like the woman was cursed to lose all of her children.

The leader of the clan looked over at their wise woman, the elderly lady glancing around before nodding. The woman's period of mourning was over, they had to bury the body before the spirit started to wander. The men looked at each other before moving aside, the message evident. The chief was going to have to be the one to pull the body of the young man away from his mother; they would have nothing to do with it.

He looked at the rest of his clan before nodding, walking over and resting his hand on the mother's shoulder, the woman having the time to look up at him before he was pulling the body of her son away. She cried out, reaching out for him, but the other men rushed forward, eager to prevent themselves from being cursed for not taking care of their fellow hunter. They carried him to the shallow pit, laying him down at the mother writhed in the hold of the leader, screaming for her son.

The men of the clan quickly lowered the young man's belongings into the pit, arranging them around his body before piling stones over him. The mother's wails grew louder at that, her struggling stopping as she turned to cling to the chief, finally seeming to accept that her son was dead. The chief patted her head before stepping away, motioning for the tribe to begin to move out and pack up, waiting until the woman moved to join the rest of them before relaxing. If she came along with them then they were safe, she wouldn't stay behind to try and dig up her son. It was best if they just left this place behind and found somewhere else for a few years. He was afraid that they had allowed the body to linger too long in the open air.

He gave the signal to move out, the tribe rushing around to pick up their last minute things, rushing to assemble into their usual group, but most of them stopping at one point or another to give a word of comfort to the mother of the deceased young man, the woman just nodding as she adjusted her own belongings across her back. She gave the pile of rocks in the depression one last look before beginning to trudge off, not feeling the slender fingers that were plucking desperately at her arm.

"Mom! Mom, wait! I'm still here, Mom! Don't let them leave!" The young man tried to pull her back, gasping when she continued to ignore him, feeling tears run down his cheeks. "Mom, I'm still here! I'm still here! Don't leave without me!"

The clan continued to walk away, the young man falling to his knees, staring after them. "Please, don't leave me! I'm scared. I'm scared."

He fell onto his hands, choking back sobs as they walked further away, still ignoring him. He looked up, his vision blurred by his tears. "What did I do?"

No one answered, the young man sniffing and standing up. He stared after his family for a while before finding a place to curl up, pressing his back against the rocks and settling down there. It was obvious that he was being punished for something, what he had done still a mystery to him. But he knew where they were heading and, in a few days, he would join back up with them and demand to know why they had left him behind. He wiped the tears from his eyes, taking a deep breath to try and calm himself down.

Maybe he hadn't done anything wrong, and they had just been in a hurry to get out of here. There were plenty of rival clans who could have threatened them this afternoon. He frowned, staring at the ground. He didn't remember a threat though. He just remembered that he had been part of a hunting party that had gone out earlier. And he remembered bringing down the deer but nothing after that, nothing until now. He shifted in his spot, glancing around nervously. Why couldn't he remember?

Or, the more important question, what had happened in that span of time when he didn't remember anything? Could he have done something then to make his family leave him? Had a spirit possessed him and forced him to do something?

He didn't know the answers, couldn't know them. The only ones that knew them were walking away from him without a care in the world. And they would be glad to leave him behind for a while. It was a well known fact that those who had been invaded by a spirit would be again. The shamans could control the spirits, but he wasn't trained, which meant that he was the victim. But, even then, they should have taken him to a shaman so he could have gotten trained. He needed to know how to defend himself now that it had happened one.

He ran a hand over his face, shivering and wrapping his arms around himself, staring at the rock face that he was leaning against. Even now he wasn't sure that they were coming back, not with the way they packed up so quickly and ignored him. And that was a sure sign of abandonment. They were leaving him to die here on his own for something that he didn't remember doing. "What did I do?"

"Nothing." He jumped at the answer, not expecting one. He clambered to his feet, staring in awe at the person who towered over him even as he leaned against the rock face. The newcomer raised an eyebrow before he shrugged. "You did nothing, they just can't see you."

"Of course they can see me. The only things that are invisible are dead."

The other man nodded slowly, waiting on him for a moment before rolling his eyes. "And I thought you were smart."

"No, I can't be dead! I'm here! I can talk, I can walk. I'm alive!" He shook his head. "I remember things! And…and I'm not filled with hate-"

"Not all of us are."

He stared at the other man for a moment before shaking his head. "Don't talk like that. I'm not a part of whatever group you are in."

The man just smirked, shaking his head as he pushed away from the rock face. "Listen, I don't like to waste my time on fools. When you have it figured it out, come and find me."

"Even if I do 'figure it out', how am I supposed to find you." He gestured towards the plains. "It's a big world out there."

"You will."

He stared at the man before waving him away. "Don't bother waiting for me. I'll be back with my family in a few days."

"And then they'll just get a shaman to drive you out."

"Drive me… Why would they want to do that?"

The other man sighed, glancing up towards the sun before walking over to the pile of stones, bending over to begin to move the stones.

"What are you doing?" He rushed over to the man, trying to pull him away. "Do you want to let the spirit out?"

"It's already out." The man gave him a long look before gesturing towards the body in the shallow pit.

For a moment, he was tempted to just walk away. This man was crazy, inferring things that he didn't want to think about. And that blank spot in his memory was bothering him. Why couldn't he remember what had happened? If he had done nothing then what had happened to him during that blank time. Torn between his choices, he gave in and looked into the pit, his stomach dropping as he stared at the face below him. His own face.

Shocked, he stumbled backwards, tripping and falling onto the ground. The man looked at him before carefully placing the rocks back over the body. "T-that's…"

"It's you."

"That's impossible."

"No it's not." The man straightened up, dusting off his hands. "They can't see you and only spirits are invisible. Logically, it makes sense."

"But I feel alive."

"And that's why I'm here." He looked up at the man. "I may have a place for you."

"But…my family…"

"They won't know you're there. And, if they do, you'll be sent out as a spirit. There's no going back."

He tensed. "Says who?"

"Says me. And that's all the matters." The man glared at him before shrugging. "Or, I could leave you here to fend for yourself."

"I could do that!"

"Really? You could just follow your family and deal with the fact that you lose a bit of yourself everyday until you are nothing more than a lesser spirit roaming around. Could you deal with that?" He jumped at that, the man shaking his head. "You won't feel alive forever, not unless you come with me."

"But what about-"

"You're dead. They left you behind so now you leave them behind."

He looked towards where his family had left, his hand rising to clutch the crude triangular pendant on the necklace that his mother had made for him when he had become a hunter. He couldn't imagine just walking away from everything that he had known and starting over; his life had been about his tribe, keeping himself and them alive in the harsh world. He ducked his head, feeling tears come to his eyes as he nodded; there was no other choice. He didn't want to waste away into nothing and be forgotten. At least like this he could still remember them clearly.

"Good. At least there are some smart ones in this batch." The man chuckled to himself before turning and walking away.

He hesitated a bit longer at the sight of his grave, the last place that he had seen his family before standing up, his hand still wrapped around the triangle necklace. For a moment, he considered ignoring the agreement that he had just made and running for his family, wanting to be told that this was all a lie. But a glance at the pile of rocks reminded him of who they had buried and left behind. His spirit wouldn't be welcome with them.

With a long sigh he turned around, following after the tall man as he walked away from his family's camp site, heading out into the plains.

* * *

Joey Wheeler braked slowly as he turned the police cruiser around the sharp curve, the last one on the residential street before it widened and turned into the main road. He smiled to himself, reaching over with one hand to turn up the radio, humming along with the music. His fingers tapped out a beat on the steering wheel, Joey staring out into the night.

Even with the street lights and the lights from his car, this stretch of road was always dark. He frowned and turned on his brights, braking again as he came to the bottom of the gentle slope. He took the moment to glance at the clock on the dashboard. He had enough time left in his shift to drive back to the police station after checking out on the new neighborhood that they were building on the other side of Holloway Road. Of course, that was if he decided to drive the curving road.

He shuddered at the thought, hands tightening on the steering wheel. While he had been taught to drive on that road - just like any other kid who grew up in Fairwater - he was still scared of driving it at night. Holloway twisted and turned, nearly doubling back on itself a couple of times as it stuck close to the hill that loomed above it. On the other side, the road ended abruptly as the hill sloped sharply down into the forest, down through the trees to where the creek flowed. One mistake and you were dead.

One of his first days as a cop had been him standing on the edge of that road, watching the police officers rig a pulley system to haul a car back up, since a tow truck was too big to fit on the small back road. He remembered rushing to the side of the road to throw up his lunch, horrified by the carnage that the wreck had caused. One of the girls had nearly been torn in half from the crash. It was a death trap for any driver, which was why they had built the main road that went around, no one wanted to drive on Holloway Road anymore, not if it was an emergency.

Joey could already imagine the horrific accidents that would happen now that there was something to get to on the other side of the road instead of it just being a short cut into town. If traffic was backed up, people would cut through Holloway, and he would be called out to witness more cars being hauled up from the creek and there would be more graves in the graveyard. The worst part would be making the house calls.

He shivered at that, shaking his head before focusing on the road in front of him, his gaze drifting to the sign that marked the intersection. Joey didn't understand why they didn't just close the road off to traffic now, since it had proven to be so dangerous. But, then again, he didn't involve himself in the affairs of the government; it just got too complicated. He was content to be a police officer and help protect the people.

His radio crackled for a moment, Joey glancing down at it before pulling over to the side, reaching over to smack the box. Sure enough, it started to work again, Joey smiling as he heard Mai over the speakers. "Over by Holloway?"

"How did you know?"

"It's the only place where there is no reception. Can't we just declare it haunted and shut it down?"

"Nah." Joey leaned back in his seat with a smile. "Then we'd get more kids."

"More corpses." He could almost see Mai roll her eyes, smiling as he leaned forward onto the steering wheel. "Well, just checking in, you were gone a while longer than I thought."

"Mrs. Madison was having trouble with her security system again. It was a quick enough fix, but I'm back on schedule. I'm just doing a round of the construction site to scare away the kids and then I'll be back."

"Alright. Take your time. You've got nothing but paperwork waiting for you here."

Joey smirked. "Well, I've got you."

"I've turned you down twice, Joseph. What makes you think I'll accept the third time?"

"Third times the charm?"

Mai laughed. "Yeah, you keep believing that sweetie."

"Come on, Mai, I'm bound to wear you down eventually. Besides, do you know any other good looking cops in this town?"

"No. But I'll keep looking." Joey smiled as he heard her fight back a laugh, leaning back in his seat with a grin. He knew better than to take Mai's teasing comments to heart; they had built up this friendship on teasing each other and making the other laugh. Besides, she had already gone out with him to lunch or an early breakfast when their shift was over, but Mai insisted that they weren't formal dates. It was still enough to give Joey hope. Mai just loved the thrill of the chase and watching Joey try to catch her, and he was willing to put forth the effort to do so.

"Alright Mai, I'll see you in about half an hour." He glanced down at his watch, resettling it on his wrist before looking back up. "Want me to pick up anything?"

"No. I'll take you out for pancakes, my treat."

"Are you asking me out?"

"Maybe. Get back here and see."

"Right then." Joey sat up in his seat, reaching up to put the car back in drive, his gaze automatically scanning the empty road in front of him as well as the turn off to Holloway Road as he got ready to move off again. "I'll see you th-"

He cut himself off abruptly, spotting something rise from the sharp incline on Holloway and drop to the pavement. Joey stared the space, ignoring Mai's frantic voice over the radio as he scrambled at his belt for the flashlight, pulling it out and focusing the beam on the object. He relaxed as he realized that it was just a stick, tensing again as another one clattered onto the pavement. Joey stared at it before reaching down for the radio. "I'm going to be a little late, Mai."

"What? Why?"

"There's something going on here. I'll call you when I figure out what." There was silence on the other end, Joey reaching over to turn off the car before pulling the keys out of the ignition and stepping out of the car. He swung the beam of the flashlight around, taking in his surroundings before he reached back to touch his handheld radio, making sure it was there before his fingers drifted over to his gun. Sure that he was ready, Joey walked around the front of the car, staring at the edge of the road where the pavement stopped.

He glanced once at the sticks before leaning over the edge of the road, shining his beam down the slope. "Hello?"

At first, he didn't hear anything. Joey frowned, tightening his grip on the flashlight. Of course, it could just be some kids playing a prank; they loved to do that this time of year. But it was still too early for Halloween, that was weeks from now. Joey rubbed his chin, about to turn back to the car when he heard a faint grunt. He turned to watch as a stick came flying up again only to fall short. He leaned forward, shining the beam further down the slope. "Anyone down there?"

"Hey!" Joey jumped, nearly falling down the slope himself. He quickly turned, trying to spot the person who had spoken, nearly missing him the first time.

His light moved over the person leaning against a tree before Joey realized what he had done, quickly bringing the beam back to rest on the person. His mouth dropped open as he stared, his hand immediately going to his radio and flicking it on. "Mai, I've got Yami down at Holloway Road, and he's in bad shape."

"Should I call for help?"

"Go for it, I'm checking it out."

"Be careful, Joey."

He smiled at that before pulling the radio back, getting a better hold on his flashlight before carefully easing his way down the slope, trying to control the slide. He kept his beam off to the side of where Yami was, smiling as he slid close to his friend. "Hey."

"Hey." Yami's voice cracked over the word, the man trying to push away from the tree only to fall back with a curse, reaching down with one arm to hold onto his ankle. "That's twisted."

"And your arm?"

"Broken. Has to be." Yami hissed and sat back, Joey staring at the makeshift sling that Yami had made out of his jacket, nodding to himself.

"Listen, the paramedics are on their way. They know you're down here." Joey tucked his flashlight into his armpit, reaching for Yami's pockets, searching through them. "If you give me your pocket knife, I can cut something for you to use as a walking stick so you'll be standing."

Yami shook his head, groaning and letting his head fall back against the tree, Joey pulling back a moment later. "Where is it?"

"Don't know. Not important." He shifted, staring at Joey, the police officer only then noticing the tear streaks on Yami's face. "Tèa…"

Joey tensed at that. "What happened to her, Yami? What happened to Tèa?"

Yami shook his head and just pointed down the slope, Joey letting out a curse and standing up. He glanced up at the slope before leaning over to rest a hand on Yami's good shoulder. "Stay here. I'll go."

He slipped down the slope before Yami could even agree, moving as quickly as he could. It wasn't too far from where Yami was that he found the car, Joey surprised that Yami had even made it that far with a broken arm and a twisted ankle. He smiled at that before carefully walking over to the car, staring at the overturned vehicle and shining the flashlight inside.

Thankfully no one was in the car anymore, which meant that they had been alive when the car crashed. It was also one less job for the paramedics, considering the cramped confines of the forest. Joey swallowed and edged around the car and the tree that it had run into, ducking a bit to get under the bent trunk. He scanned the area, stepping carefully on the grass as he worked his way through the small space in the trees.

Joey frowned as a sweep of the beam picked out a trail of blood, following it away from the car and towards the creek. Why would Tèa have crawled off in a different direction if Yami was going to get help? It didn't make sense, especially if they had both survived the crash itself. Joey hummed to himself, trying to keep himself from jumping at shadows. Knowing how many people had died on this road wasn't helping him at all, he could just imagine ghostly faces peering out at him as he walked, all the people who hadn't survived such a plunge.

He let out a breath of relief when he saw a shoe emerge out of the darkness, about to walk closer when he eye caught a trail of blood leading away from the body. Joey frowned and turned around, mentally mapping out where the trail that he had followed had come from, ending up staring at the driver's side of the car. Joey tipped his head to the side, sucking in a deep breath. Why would Yami crawl all the way over here before going towards the road?

An uneasy feeling settled in his gut told Joey to spin around. The beam from his flashlight illuminated the body that was sprawled out on the ground, Joey sucking in a deep breath and stumbling backwards. He gathered himself back together, quickly walking over to Tèa's side and kneeling down, pressing his fingers against her neck. He stayed there for a while, mouth gaping open in shock when he realized that there was no pulse. Joey jerked backwards, staring at the dead body of his friend, looking over her with his flashlight to see if there were any indications of wounds to show that she had died from them. But there was nothing. Nothing except… Joey nearly dropped his flashlight.

Carved into Tèa's head was the number thirteen.

He took three quick steps backward, staring at the look of surprise and horror on her face before abruptly turning away, feeling his stomach churn. This didn't make sense. She had survived the crash to get over here, Joey knew that. If Yami had been carrying her than the blood trail would be more substantial from the extra weight. Besides, Yami's arm was broken; he wouldn't be able to carry someone away from the car. Nothing explained how Tèa had gotten here, or how the number had come to be carved in her forehead.

Joey turned his head away and began to trek back up to where he left Yami, breathing a sigh of relief when he heard the ambulance coming. He would get Yami out of here and to the hospital before he sent a stretcher down for Tèa. He would keep his suspicions to himself until they had discerned the cause of death. But it still wouldn't explain the number carved into Tèa's head.

Or the fact that Yami's pocket knife was missing.


	2. Shadow of Death

** Chapter One: Shadow of Death **

Vivian jerked away at a cold touch to her foot, lying still and shivering. The old house was drafty; there was nothing to worry about. But then the touch came again, brushing up along her leg, straying too close to her thigh for comfort. She whimpered and rolled to the side, but the cold touch was still there, now rubbing circles. Vivian twitched, pulling her covers more tightly around her. That wasn't a draft; Vivian knew exactly what it was. But if she moved, it would just chase her.

The cold touch inched up further, Vivian shivering and trying to keep herself from screaming.

Her mother said that it was just in her mind, that she was just making it up to get attention. But that wasn't true; she would never make this up. She could never make this up. There was no reason to make this up.

"Scream?" The pleading voice in her ear made her jump. Vivian jolted upright, clutching her nightgown close. She backed away from her bed, carefully watching the sheets and the shadows. It usually came from either of those two places. She shivered, keeping her eyes glued to her bed as she backed towards the wall. If she could just get her wrap, then she would be fine, she could run for help.

She reached out for her wrap, frowning when she touched the wall. It was too early; she wasn't even close enough to be touching the wall. Vivian spun around, her mouth falling open silently as she stared at the bulge in the wall, breathing quickly as she watched it raise its head. She screamed.

Vivian lunged for her door, pulling it open before racing down the hall, screaming as she went. Vivian heard her mother's door open, not caring that she had woken the elderly lady up. She was too busy running down the stairs, looking around for a place to hide. For a moment, she glanced toward the door. It would be so easy to just run out for help, but that wasn't allowed.

She rushed into the sitting room, ducking behind the sofa and clinging to the arm. "Please…please don't hurt me."

There was nothing, Vivian almost ready to relax. It sometimes went away when she asked it to. But, sometimes, it didn't and that's what she was worried about. Still, if she snuck away, then she would be safe. After all, her mother had woken up, that would mean that this would be over soon. It was always bad when she woke her mother up.

A roar from behind her startled Vivian, the woman screaming as hands wrapped around her neck, hauling her up as she struggled. She clawed at the hands, tearing them away from her and turning to stare at the wall, watching the bulge retreat through the wall, paintings tilting as it moved under the wallpaper. Vivian screamed and rushed for the kitchen, jumping to the side to avoid a bookcase falling to the ground.

She pulled the door open, diving under the table as she heard it skitter along the wall, flinching as the china cabinet toppled over. Vivian crawled under the table, panting for breath as she watched the bulge move along the wall, hoping that it had missed her and would move on to the next room. She bit her lip before moving, screaming as something cut into her hand. Vivian drew back, staring at the shard of china before pulling it out, curling her hand to try and stop the bleeding.

But she had betrayed herself, Vivian, dropping back to the floor and awkwardly trying to crawl out from under the table as the creature pressed through the wood, the board that ran across the underside of the table falling to the floor. Vivian pushed off of the floor, leaving one bloody handprint behind her before running back for the stairs. If she just made it to her room…

The rods that held the carpet to the stairs clattered as the creature crawled after her under the carpet, Vivian chancing a look back over her shoulder. The glance back made her misjudge her footing, Vivian falling onto the carpet as she tripped over the top stair, grabbing at it to try and not fall back down the stairs. She whimpered as she tried to pull herself back up to her feet, managing to get to her knees when the creature grabbed her wrists. Vivian screamed as it began to drag her backwards, twisting and writhing in its hold.

A door slammed open, Vivian feeling the creature tense behind her, the head of it jerking up to look at where her mother was. Mrs. Wong stepped out into the hallway, one hand adjusting the wrap around her shoulders while the other held the shotgun, the juxtaposition between the image of the kindly old lady and the weapon lasting only a moment. Mrs. Wong brought the shot gun down, holding it level with the creature's head, smiling. "The wicked will be punished."

Vivian heard a growl from the creature behind her, its grip tightening on her wrists. She winced this time, wiggling to try to escape from its hold. The creature hissed at her, a warning to remain still. Vivian sucked in a quick breath at that, looking up at her mother in fear as Mrs. Wong pulled the trigger.

The shotgun went off, Vivian tumbling backwards as the lump where the creature's head was exploded. She rolled on her side, breathing quickly and trying to calm herself down. A single glance at the hole in the carpet sent her scrambling to the other side, the side closest to her room. She knew what it would do now, it would be angry that its fun had been ruined. Vivian looked up to the door to her room before looking back at the hole, jumping back as a black shape rose out of it, barely making out the shape of the cloak and cowl before she was running for her room, yanking open the door and tumbling in.

Vivian spun to lock the door, glancing around her room before rushing over to her bed and curling back up into the blankets, lying still as she waited for her heartbeat to slow down again. Even over the sound of her pounding heart, she tried to listen for any hint that the creature had come back. But she knew how it worked; it stuck to the rules even if something interrupted them. If she made it back to her room then she was safe for another night, perhaps two if the creature wasn't in a playful mood. Vivian yawned before letting her head fall back to the pillow, ignoring the strange feeling of blood pooling in her palm and dripping onto the sheets, too exhausted to care. She drifted back to sleep to the familiar sound of her mother shuffling over the landing outside of her door.

* * *

The rain fell steadily on the man kneeling next to the body, Yugi glancing up at the cloudy sky and shaking his head. Of course it would be raining while he worked, especially on a case like this. He sighed and pulled the glove from his left hand, running his fingers over the left side of the girl's neck and down until his hand rested over her heart. Yugi let his hand rest there for a moment before he sucked in a deep breath and began to stand up. At first, he felt resistance but he was far too used to the feeling to be frightened; he just continued to pull.

The resistance lasted a moment more before it disappeared, Yugi gently turning his palm up and watching as the silvery substance collected in it. He gave the soul a sad smile before pulling off his other glove, tucking both gloves into a pocket of his coat before reaching out to stroke the soul, watching it quiver in his palm. "Hush now, you're safe, I've got you. You're going to be alright now."

The soul calmed down, Yugi smiling and rocking back onto his heels. "You're going to a good place, I can feel it. And don't worry about the man who killed you, he didn't get too far."

He sighed as the soul calmed down, dropping his palm away and watching the ball of silver float. "Go on now."

It hesitated before zipping off, swirling around the body that it had once inhabited. Yugi stepped back as a column of light appeared, squinting slightly to watch as the soul shifted to reflect what it had looked like in life before the column and the soul disappeared, leaving Yugi rocking back and forth.

It was getting more tempting with every recovery to just step into that light with the soul. It would take them both back to where they belonged and he wouldn't have to worry about this job anymore. He wouldn't have to worry about facing the next stack of souls due to be collected, the others and their balances or Seto glaring at him and demanding to know why he had broken up with his boyfriend. Yugi sighed and ducked his head, reaching back into his pockets for his gloves, pulling them back on. He wasn't looking forward to that meeting at all.

And, speaking of their meeting, Yugi pulled his sleeve back from his arm, staring at his watch and letting out a curse. He was going to be late now. Of course, Seto would excuse a certain amount of time for this job, but not that much. Seto didn't seem to understand Yugi's need to reassure the souls before he sent them on, or his need to find out what had happened to them. Seto didn't even see them off; he just turned and walked away. Yugi supposed it was his own way of making sure that he just didn't become cold and closed off. He had been like that once during the World Wars and he didn't want to get that way again.

Yugi rubbed a hand over his forehead before turning around to grab the scythe that was leaning against the brick wall of the alley, tapping the end against the ground and watching the blade retract back into the handle. He got a better grip on the wood before twisting it, the handle of the scythe shrinking down to the size of a pen. Yugi smiled at it before sticking it back into his pocket, turning and walking for the front of the alley, stepping carelessly over the bleeding body of the murderer at the front of the alley.

He shuddered as he felt the evil coming off the person, the pure need to hurt and kill that man from the man. His hand automatically went to where his scythe laid waiting for him, having to remind himself that the man was already dead. Yugi shrugged his shoulders, tucking his chin close to his chest and he turned and began to walk towards the diner where their group usually met.

Officially, it was their job to collect the souls of the people who died and send them on to the afterlife. But, with the explosion in the human population, they had stepped back their efforts and focused on the people who were killed in accidents and murders, the one whose souls were more likely to remain stuck in their bodies because of the shock of their sudden deaths.

The times and places they got for their jobs were just guesses from those higher up, no one died on schedule; but what they got were the best guesses. And there was always a chance that the people could make a choice that would change their lives, but Yugi got those e-mails directly to his phone which he checked religiously. He would prefer to have a job canceled then have to do it.

He peeked out from under his bangs, smiling as he saw the lights of their diner just ahead. He wrapped his arms more tightly around him, picking up his pace so he could get warm again, tired of being wet and cold. Yugi jogged the last few steps up to the door, pulling it open quickly before walking over to their usual booth and taking off his coat, hanging it with the others before sliding into his usual place.

"You're late." Yugi glanced up at Seto, his gaze drifting to Kisara, the woman giving him a shy wave.

Yugi returned the wave before shrugging. "I had a job, remember?"

"It shouldn't have taken so long." Seto narrowed his eyes, Yugi tensing at that.

"That's just your opinion." There were times that he hated working under Seto, the man just as frustrating as when he had first met him. Yugi sobered at that thought, sighing and reaching out to pull his soda close, glad that Ryou had ordered for him. He used the straw to poke at the ice cubes, watching as they bobbed at the surface. "Some of us like to make sure that they're alright."

"It's not our job."

"No, it's a courtesy."

Seto sighed and looked away, relaxing a bit when Kisara rested a hand on his shoulder before leaning forward with a smile, pushing a piece of hair out of her face. "It's good to see you again, Yugi."

"You too, Kisara." He stole a glance at Seto with a smile, glad that they were moving away from the topic of his lateness. "You staying this time?"

"Perhaps."

"We're not discussing that!" Seto narrowed his eyes as he glared at Yugi, Kisara giving an apologetic shrug before sitting back. Yugi gave her a thankful smile, knowing that she had just tried to help. But Seto was the boss; they would have to listen to him in the end. Yugi sighed and propped his elbow on the table, ready for the lecture that was sure to follow. "We're discussing the fact that Yugi came late to a scheduled meeting and the fact that he hasn't found a balance yet."

"You called this meeting just for me?"

"No, but your issues are first on the agenda."

"My issues?" Yugi went to stand up, but Ryou tugged him back down. He glanced at his friend, noticing that Bakura was smirking on the other side of Ryou before turning to look back at Seto. "Listen, Seto, I'm fine. Yes, I have my off days, but that's to be expected. We're two of the oldest in this job. Do they really expect us to be fine all the time?"

"No, but they do expect us to be taking steps to ensure that we'll be around for a while." There was a small glance at Kisara, Yugi tensing at the implication before forcing us to relax. Seto looked back at him, narrowing his eyes. "You know what I'm going to ask."

"Yes. And I have my answer." Yugi leaned forward tapping his finger against the table. "I was just lonely and I wanted to feel…normal. It was just that, a normal relationship, not me searching for a balance. When we didn't work out we broke up, that bastard."

"Yugi?"

He looked up at Seto, his eyes wide in fear for a second before he shook his head. "Nothing."

Seto was silent for a moment before he leaned forward, pressing his fingertips together. "You avenged her didn't you?"

Yugi glanced up at Seto before nodding slowly, his hands clenching into fists. He heard Seto sigh, shaking his head and keeping his voice to a whisper. "I had to. I saw what he did to her and I had to." He rested his head against his forearms with a long sigh. "Seto, I can't just let that slide."

"You can't just choose who to kill and who to keep alive either."

"And they can?" Yugi jerked his head up to glare at Seto before he let it drop, groaning as he felt another headache settling in. The headaches were happening more often, which wasn't helping his mood or his ability to deal with Seto. He sat up, rubbing his forehead and shrugging. "Seto, please, not right now. I can promise you that I'm not going rogue. I just… He was the next on my list, tomorrow morning actually. Me killing him now would have been better than the lingering death that he was going to have."

Seto huffed but said nothing else, Yugi relaxing at that as the others began talking, allowing his eyes to slide shut. With these headaches he hadn't been getting enough sleep either, spending most of his nights awake. He spent most of his days stumbling around in an exhausted haze, from his house to his day job at the Kame Game Shop and then to his afternoons out collecting souls. He was just glad that Seto hadn't felt that it was necessary to increase his work load. With Ryou working the mornings and Seto taking up the rest of the slack, their job was relatively easy.

Yugi rubbed his forehead, jumping as he heard Ryou call his name, giving his friend a sheepish smile. "Sorry, what was that?"

"Were you listening at all?"

"No." Yugi blushed. "I was just spacing out."

"Again. You're losing it pip-squeak." Bakura laughed at the glare that Yugi sent his way, Yugi holding the expression a moment longer before deciding that arguing with Bakura wouldn't be worth it. He looked away, gritting his head as Bakura let out a low whistle. "Wow, not rising to that caveman?"

"What did you-"

"Yugi!" He twitched as Seto called his name, turning to look at his boss before slumping.

"M-maybe I should just leave. I'm not helping anything here." Yugi went to stand up and grab his jacket when Seto motioned for him to sit down. He hesitated a moment later before following Seto's order, glancing around the group, surprised when he noticed that all of them were looking at him worriedly. Yugi tried to sink down into his seat, forcing himself to sit up straight as Seto stared at him.

Yugi jumped as Seto sighed, not sure how to take the sound, glancing around at everyone else at the table. They were still looking at him, the amount of attention making his stomach turn. He was about to rethink his decision to stay when Seto sat up. "Listen Yugi, you're a matter of concern."

"Concern?"

"Yes. You're one of the oldest of our reapers, and you haven't found your balance. There are about thirty predicted times when you were supposed to go insane and you've passed them, but it's a matter of time before you actually go insane."

He glanced around the table, ready to retort when the truth settling in Yugi ducking his head. Seto was right, but all logical thought he should have gone insane from not having a balance long ago. Ryou had been the luckiest of them all, finding his balance a mere two hundred and eighty years after his death in 1000 BC. Seto himself had barely made it to 1692 where they had picked up Kisara, and that had been a close thing. They had locked Seto in a room with her until he had admitted that she might work for the time being and she still had yet to leave. But Yugi still hadn't found anyone. He had gotten close once but…Yugi flinched at the thought, looking away from the rest of the group.

Ryou reached out to place a hand on Yugi's arm. "What Seto is trying to say is that we're worried about you. And you've been acting strangely for a while now."

Seto nodded slowly. "Which is why I think it best that you take a vacation, of sorts."

"Of sorts?" Yugi raised an eyebrow, Seto nodding slowly.

"There's been some trouble in America. We've been getting requests to send someone over there." Seto rolled his eyes with an annoyed sigh. "Why they can't ask for anyone else, I don't know, but they've been asking us."

"That's the vacation." Yugi threw his hands up into the air. "How is working going to keep me sane?"

"Not working, researching. You'll just be keeping tabs on a certain epidemic in a small town. Nothing too hard." Seto smirked at him, before reaching into the folder on the table and holding out a small folder. "Your plane tickets."

"So, I don't get a choice?"

"No. Your flight leaves in two days, until then, you're off duty." Seto stood up to leave, taking a step away from the booth and holding out a hand to help Kisara from the booth. He helped her into her coat, the two of them walking away from the booth, Kisara the only one to look over her shoulder and give Yugi an apologetic smile.

Yugi stared after them, his gaze dropping to the plane tickets that he held in his hand, resisting the urge to rip them up. If he was honest with himself, he wanted this vacation, wanting to get away from his life here in Domino City. America seemed far enough away from Japan for him to relax, Yugi hunching his shoulders forward with a long sigh; torn between staying here in his comfortable life and going somewhere else and getting a new start. After all, he had been with this same group since he had become a reaper.

He ran a hand through his hair, turning to look at Ryou, noticing that the white haired man was leaning forward to smile at him. "It's for the best Yugi. We're all just worried about you."

Yugi slid out of the booth, Ryou and Bakura following after him. He continued to stare down at the tickets in his hand, not sure what to think about his new assignment. He jumped as Bakura patted his shoulder. "Listen to my bunny, pip-squeak. You've been more out of sorts than usual. Come back with the old Yugi, alright?"

Bakura walked away before Yugi could say anything, catching Ryou's hand as they walked out the door. Ryou turned around to wave good-bye to him; Yugi raising is hand to wave at Ryou before he slumped back into the booth. He glanced back at the plane tickets before tossing them back onto the table, returning to his drink. He poked at the ice cubes again, watching them bob as he just let his mind drift, purposefully not letting himself think about anything.

"Hey." He jerked back up as the waitress walked over to the table, relaxing with a smile.

"Hello, Miho."

The blonde gave him a wave, glancing around before folding the tray she was holding against herself, smiling. "What's up?"

"Oh, everything and nothing." Yugi shook his head, and leaned forward against the table, watching as Miho straightened up to clean up the table. He tensed as she noticed the plane tickets, hesitating before looking at him.

"Going somewhere?"

"My boss wants me to take a vacation to America."

"America? I've never been there before." Miho hummed to herself, holding the tray with one hand before reaching over to quickly wipe off the table. "It should be fun."

"Yeah…fun."

She hesitated before leaning against the table, the tray against her hip. "Now, what's that about?"

"Hm?"

"You've been dead recently, trailing in and out of here with your friends, But you haven't been there, not the Yugi I know. Where have you gone?"

Yugi stared at her for a moment before pushing away from the table, his hand going to rest on the tickets. He turned to look at them a while more before heaving a sigh. "It's just everything and…and I've been feeling off."

"Well then," Miho reached over and tapped the tickets with a wink, "take advantage of that and go. You need it."

She swept away with a smile, Yugi watching her before dropping his gaze back to the tickets, reaching out to pull them back towards him, tapping his fingers against the folder. If it was enough for everyone around him to notice that he was off, then maybe it was time to go away from this job. Yugi sighed, shutting his eyes for a moment and taking a deep breath.

Maybe it was better to leave the city, to go back to something simpler and try to straighten his life out. Because, right now, it felt like it was spinning out of control.

Yugi groaned, running a hand through his hair before he stood up, pulling his coat on before shoving the tickets into his pockets and walking out of the diner. Yugi ducked his chin before shuffling back towards the Kame Game Shop. Hopefully he would in time to shut the shop down and help Sugoroku with dinner. His stomach rumbled at the thought, a reminder that their meeting hadn't had their usual dinner with it.

He picked up his pace, winding his way through the city, taking back alleys to get to where the game shop was. He didn't have to worry about getting mugged, Yugi smiling at the thought. He reached for the wooden stick in his pocket, reassured by the presence of the scythe. His fingers fell away from the wood as he walked out of alley, spotting the bright lights of the Kame Game Shop.

Yugi jogged the last block to the game shop, walking into the brightly light shop portion of the house, turning to hang his coat up before walking up to the counter, leaning against it and staring in the direction of the store room. "Sugoroku?"

"Ah, Yugi, you're home." Yugi shook his head and walked over to the storeroom, holding his arms and taking the load of boxes out into the shop and setting them down on the floor before beginning to unpack them, watching as Sugoroku bustled around the shop, finishing up the closing process as Yugi stocked the shelves.

They didn't talk as they worked, rushing through this last part of the day before they could retreat up to the house above the shop to relax from a long day of hard work. Sugoroku gave the shop a quick sweep as Yugi restocked, Yugi the one to double check all of the products and straighten the shelves, stepping to one side as the elderly man went to count up the money at the register.

Their closing up took about an hour, Sugoroku the first to trudge up the stairs. Yugi remained down in the shop for a while longer, puttering around until he ran out of things to do. He glanced over to where his coat was hanging up, suddenly reluctant to go upstairs and talk to his employer. Suddenly, leaving the elderly man alone sounded like a bad idea.

Yugi shook his head, walking over and digging through his pockets to find the tickets, grabbing his scythe as well and shoving it into the pocket of his jeans. He glanced out through the door at the pouring rain before turning and going up the stairs, catching the smell of dinner coming from the kitchen. He smiled and followed the smell, taking the plate that Sugoroku gave him before going over to the table, waiting for the elderly man to sit down before beginning to eat, picking through the rice on his plate as he tried to figure out how to break the news to Sugoroku.

He let out a long sigh, looking up as Sugoroku chuckled. "I have never heard you sigh so much before. What's up? Tough time with your boyfriend?"

"No." Yugi tapped his chopstick against his plate. "We're done. Have been for about a week."

"A week? You never told me…I'm sorry."

"It's nothing to be sorry about, we just didn't work." Yugi raised one shoulder in a shrug. "It's something else."

"Something else?"

"Yeah." He glanced up before ducking his head again. "Seto wants me to go to America to help with something there. But I'm not sure."

"Go for it."

"What about you?"

"I'm a grown man, Yugi." Sugoroku smiled, leaning on the table. "You do what you need to do, I can handle this place."

"Seriously? I don't know how long I'll be gone."

"I'll have your room ready for you when you get back. Just try to relax" Sugoroku pushed away from the table, walking over to put his plate in the sink. "When does your flight go leave?"

"Two days." Yugi checked the ticket. "At eleven in the morning."

"I assuming Seto won't be there to see you off."

"No, he has better things to do."

"Then I'll take you."

Yugi froze at that, turning to look at Sugoroku. "You don't have to do that."

"I want to." Yugi blushed as Sugoroku ruffled his hair before gesturing to the stairs that led to the bedrooms. "Now, upstairs with you and get packed. Two days will just fly by."

Yugi nodded, getting up and nearly bounding up the stairs, relieved that he was feeling more like his normal self again, only then realizing how he had been acting. He paused at the top of the stairs, shaking his head and walking into his bedroom, glancing around the space before sighing and sitting on the bed, letting his head drop into his hands.

Maybe Seto and the others were right. Maybe he just needed a break to gather himself back together, to keep himself sane while he was still on his own. It had been two hundred forty-seven thousand years since he had died, and he had spent most of that time alone. Even now everyone else had their one person who would balance them, and Yugi was stuck on the edge. For brief moments, he would envy them their private smiles and soft touches; even Seto who would melt for Kisara. And he had no one, no one but Sugoroku.

Maybe it was time for him to look for his balance.

But he had tried that, tried that method so many times and he knew that it didn't work. The fact that he was still alone proved that much. And it hurt that he was like this; all these years into his second chance at life and he had never lived.

Yugi tilted sideways, flopping into the bed and staring up through the skylight. The childish urge to wish upon a star came to him, Yugi shaking his head and flipping onto his other side, closing his eyes. Wishes wouldn't bring him happiness or the peace he wanted, wishes wouldn't bring back his clan or his mother. Wishes wouldn't bring back the world he had once known. Even if he closed his eyes and hoped with all of his might, he would still wake up the next morning in same situation. In all his years in the world, he only knew one thing for certain.

The world was cruel.

* * *

Rebecca Hawkins pursed her lips as she stared at the article in front of her, tapping her fingers against the desk before letting out a sigh of disgust, rubbing her fingers against her temples. She flipped her blonde hair back, glancing out at the nearly empty office before turning her attention back to the computer screen. Everything was fine for the next issue of the Fairwater Report; the stacks of paper were just waiting to be sent out as soon as the office closed for the night. But that still left this article. She had already pulled it from two issues because it wasn't right, and she had such high hopes for this young journalist.

She glanced away from her computer before standing up, straightening out her jacket and skirt before walking over to the door to her office, looking at the few others who were staying late, smiling at her luck. Rebecca stared at the young man until he looked up, waving for him to come over. "Charles."

Charles hesitated before nodding, turning back to his computer to save what he was working on. Rebecca waited until he was walking towards her to go back to her computer, sitting herself behind the desk and leaning onto her elbows. The young reporter hesitantly edged into the room, glancing around at the collection of awards that had been framed and hung on the walls. Patiently, Rebecca waited out his moment of awe before gesturing for him to take a seat, turning the screen of her computer so that he could see it as well, giving him a sweet smile. "Hello, Charles."

The young reporter slumped as he recognized the article. "Not again."

"Don't look like that. It's not that you're a horrible writer, it's just that this doesn't spark anything." Rebecca adjusted her glasses before turning back to the screen, clearing her throat and scrolling down the page before choosing a section to read. "'For years, the name Fairwater has been associated with the infamous Johnny Bartlett massacre; the insane hospital orderly charged with the murder of twelve patients. Now it seems like the shadow of death has returned to Fairwater, the death toll from these mysterious deaths still rising…' You see what I'm getting at?"

Charles shifted in his seat. "I don't, Ms. Hawkins."

"Well then, how about this." She scrolled back up the page, clearing her throat. "'It seems like the Grim Reaper has once again decided to visit Fairwater, bringing a collection of deaths that seem to be heart attacks.'"

Rebecca stopped and looked over at him through her glasses, sighing and turning the screen away. "It's a really good piece, Charles, and there's a lot of potential there, but it just seems to fall flat. There's no…life, if you pardon the pun."

"Yes, Ms. Hawkins."

"I knew you would understand." Rebecca smiled at him and sat back. "Now, I'll send this back to you so you can gut it, but I'm going to make a few requests. I want you to get more information on this, talk to the doctors and police officers, and see what they have to say about this. If there's one thing that people want, it's information on this. And if anyone gives you trouble, just tell them to call me."

"Of course, Ms. Hawkins."

"There needs to be more from the people themselves in this." Rebecca waved one hand as she thought. "More of their reactions and what they think. Talk to them, get that."

Charles hesitated for a moment. "But that would make the article too long, Ms. Hawkins."

"Ah, I'm glad you caught it. And yes it would." She went back to tapping her fingers against the desk before turning to face him. "Get the hard facts first; we'll print that as soon as it is done. Then, we wait a while for the reaction of the people. Two front page stories."

"T-two?"

"Of course Charles, I had my eye on you as soon as you were out of college." Rebecca winked at him before smiling. "I could see the talent there, which is why I hired you, and you have yet to disappoint me. Keep up the good work, Charles."

"Thank you Ms. Hawkins." He smiled and got up. "I'll make this one of my best."

"I'm sure you will." She turned back to stare at the screen, tipping her head to the side before turning, catching Charles before he was about to walk out of her office. "And, Charles, no more references to death as a person."


	3. Distant Shores

** Chapter Two: Distant Shores **

Serenity leaned forward, frowning at the sign that she passed under to get to the Wong house, feeling a shiver run down her spine as she turned to her right to look at the old hospital before focusing on the old house in front of her, her hands tightening on the steering wheel of her car. Normally, she wouldn't have come up here, she would have remained at the hospital to look over the routine calls there, but Doctor Sanders was out at a funeral. One of his friends had died recently of a heart attack, which meant that she was in charge of some of his patients; which included the reclusive Wong family.

She let the car roll to a stop in front of the old house, looking at it fearfully before putting the car in park and reaching for her bag. Serenity turned her car off and stepped from it. She clutched her bag close to her as she walked towards the forbidding house, wondering if she could turn and run now. But that would be against her oath. The hospital had gotten a call from this house and it was her duty to come to see it. The reason why Mrs. Wong couldn't bring her daughter to the hospital was beyond Serenity at the moment.

With a shaking hand, she reached up to ring the doorbell, staring back when an elderly Asian woman opened the door, peering down at her before shaking her head. "Who are you? This is private property, I demand you leave."

"I'm Doctor Serenity Taylor." She put on her best smile. "I'm here about your call."

"No, my doctor is Doctor Sanders."

"Well, he had to go to a funeral today, one of his close friends. He personally asked me to look after all calls for him." Serenity watched as the old woman took a moment of serious thought, staring at her steadily.

"Qualifications?"

"The same as Doctor Sanders and perhaps a bit more." Serenity blushed. "I tend to work more with children than adults because-"

"You'll do." Serenity blinked as she was waved in, stepping hesitantly onto the plush carpet of the hallway and looking around the house. If she didn't know better, she would have thought that this house was a mansion, her gaze drifting up the staircase to the second floor before she glanced back at Mrs. Wong, coming to a startled stop as the elderly woman stiffly gestured for her to enter the sitting room. "Vivian is in here."

Serenity nodded her thanks before stepping into the room, spending a moment to marvel at all of the furniture and the pictures in the room before looking at the woman who was sitting in a chair clutching her hand and rocking back and forth. Serenity frowned and knelt down on the floor in front of Vivian, nearly jumping back when the woman looked up at her, from the veil of black hair that hung around her face, brown eyes wide and wild.

Vivian startled back when she saw Serenity before calming down, offering a sweet smile before glancing up at her mother. The woman immediately curled up on herself at the sight of her mother, Serenity carefully keeping suspicion from appearing on her face. A reaction like that was usually a sign of abuse, but she would have to look over Vivian's records to see if thing happened more often.

"Hello." The soft word got a smile from the woman, Vivian giving a nod and dropping her injured hand into Serenity's.

A long gash ran down her palm the cut not deep enough to show bone but deep enough to require stitches. Serenity bit her lip before reaching into her bag for a bandage. She started to wrap it around the gash, tugging at it to make sure it was tight enough to stop the bleeding. "Is that too tight?"

"No." The word wasn't more than a whisper, Vivian glancing up at her before going back to staring at the floor and settling into her rocking again.

"Good." She stood up, reaching for her bag. "We'll need to get you to the hospital."

"Hospital?" Mrs. Wong shook her head, moving to block the door. "Vivian doesn't leave the house."

"But she needs stitches, it's a deep cut." Serenity looked back at Vivian, noticing that she had gone back to clutching her hand. "How did she get that anyway?"

Mrs. Wong tensed at that, her eyes darting around the room before she took a step backward. "She…she cut herself cutting the vegetables last night. The knife just…slipped."

Serenity shook her head, turning back to Vivian. "She needs stitches, that bandage is just going to hold it for a while. It could get infected."

"Then leave some antibiotics." Mrs. Wong shrugged before walking out of the room, obviously not caring about the wound any longer.

Serenity shook her head, turning back to Vivian and kneeling to collect her back, looking at the woman again. Once again the wild brown eyes took a while to focus on her. Serenity offered a soft smile, but that was not enough to convince Vivian to let go of her injury. Serenity sighed, freezing at tipping her head to the side before slowly reaching out. When Vivian didn't start backwards, Serenity pushed her hair aside, staring at the bruise that was around Vivian's neck. Serenity sucked in a quick breath. "Who did this to you?"

The woman sniffed, twisting to wipe her tears on her yellow dress. "It hurts."

"Vivian!" She started at her mother's call, giving Serenity an apologetic look before shuffling out of the room and up the stairs without another word. Serenity followed her to the hall, watching the woman disappear into her room before rounding on her mother.

"She needs some medical attention, stuff that I can't do here!"

"Doctor Sanders could." Mrs. Wong lifted her chin. "He understood about Vivian, unlike you. I've never seen you around here and I know everyone in this town."

Serenity hesitated for a moment. "I used to live here, before my mother moved away. My brother is in the police department."

"There is no Officer Taylor in the police department."

"Joseph Wheeler."

"The prankster." Serenity stiffened at the description of her brother, hating the way that Mrs. Wong looked down her nose at her. "The no good ruffian who took after his father. Of course he would end up in the police department, just another place to bully people."

"He's one of the best on staff!"

"Your opinion." Mrs. Wong sniffed. "But I see you did better for yourself, got yourself a doctorate."

"I did. I paid my own way through college and medical school."

"Got married." Serenity nodded, resisting the urge to look fiercely proud about her accomplishments, that would only put her at the same level as Mrs. Wong. "And yet you're here instead of at home raising children. What kind of wife are you?"

"Tristan and I don't want children just yet."

"Selfish."

Serenity stiffened before turning around to walk to the door, Mrs. Wong following her out. She forced herself to keep smiling as she turned to face the elderly woman. "Well, that's all I can do here…unless you will let me take Vivian to the hospital for proper care."

"She can never leave the house." Mrs. Wong gave her another long look before opening the front door for Serenity. She nodded at the elderly woman before walking out, freezing on the front porch as Mrs. Wong spoke. "You know nothing about my daughter. They said she was an accessory after the fact. I know what it was. It was cold blooded murder."

The door slammed before Serenity could turn and demand an answer, frowning before walking back into her car. She placed her bag on the passenger seat before turning on the car, tapping her fingers against the steering wheel before tuning on the car and turning so she could go back down the drive.

Mrs. Wong was right about one thing, she didn't know a lot about Fairwater. Her mother and father had gotten divorced when she was very young. She could point out familiar places, but she didn't know any of the history of the town. She had just encouraged Tristan to move here when she was offered a job in the hospital and there was an opening on the coaching staff at the local high school. It was a chance to go back to a small town, the environment that she was most comfortable with and a chance to live closer to her brother, the one that she had only seen in pictures and heard over the phone.

She came to a careful stop under the iron sign, glancing up at it with a shudder before turning out onto the road, following it to the main road before letting out a sigh of relief. Joey swore that Holloway Road was the scariest road in Fairwater, but she had to disagree. The road up to the old hospital and the Wong's house was probably the scariest. Serenity looked up at her rearview mirror before shaking her head.

Her first stop would be back at the hospital to finish up with her day. And then, she would stop by the library to see what she could dig up about the Wongs and Fairwater. But that trip would have to be short because Tristan was working late and it was her turn to cook dinner. She could probably bring some material back to read over. Serenity tucked a strand of red hair behind her ear with a long sigh. It seemed like things just kept piling up since she had returned to Fairwater.

* * *

Yugi stretched as he stepped out of the terminal at the airport, blinking in the bright sunlight before looking around. Seto had promised that there would be someone out here to meet him. He scanned the crowd of people moving around in the airport, tensing when he saw someone making a beeline for him. Yugi clutched at his carry on bag, ready to bold when the stranger came to a stop a short distance from him, staring at him in awe. He waited until the stranger inclined his head in greeting before carefully walking forward.

"Yugi Mutou?"

"Yes."

The man held out a hand, Yugi taking it after a moment of consideration. He should trust this man if Seto trusted him, Seto didn't just trust anyone. He tried to smile up at the man, but was distracted by the eager handshake that was given to him. "I'm Raphael Stevenson. Thanks for coming."

"You're welcome." Yugi blinked rapidly as he was ushered away from the terminal, staring at the red haired man who had gathered his bags. The two continued to move Yugi to the front of the airport and towards the parking lot, keeping up a friendly banter between them until they got to their car. Yugi clambered into the front passenger seat, settling down as the others followed him, the two suddenly falling silent.

"Did Seto tell you why we called you here?"

"No." Yugi turned so he could see the red headed man as well. "He just said that you were having trouble with something."

"Well, we didn't give him much to go off of. It's embarrassing to have to go crawling to the oldest of the reapers for help." The red headed man shook his head, offering his hand for Yugi to shake. "I'm Alister Smith, another one of the reapers working this part of the west coast. It's an honor to meet you."

"Pleased to meet you too." Yugi quickly buckled up as Raphael started the car, managing to hold his tongue long enough for Raphael to get out of the airport parking lot and onto the highway. "So, what is this about?"

Alister sighed and shifted, Yugi turning around to watch the man, noticing the glance up at Raphael. He wondered how much they had agreed to tell him, suddenly wondering if he could trust the two of them. Yugi turned slightly in his seat, paying careful attention to the body language of the two as he listened to Raphael.

"About five years back all of these deaths started to happen, just randomly and completely out of the blue. We usually know about these things ahead of time because of the guys upstairs." Yugi nodded as Alister gestured toward the sky, biting back his usual comment. Technically speaking, the afterlife was another plain of existence running parallel to their world, but some of the young reapers still talked about Heaven and Hell like they were actually on Earth itself.

"We talked about it with them and they said that there was nothing on it." Alister paused for a moment scratching the back of his neck. "I guess you know how most deaths are already accounted for years before they happen and they have people watching for any changes, but these were just…dead, before we could even take their souls. We had one of our own down there for a while trying to keep on top of it, but it was too random and then…"

Alister trailed off, swallowing harshly. Yugi stared at him before turning to look at Raphael, the big blonde looking nervous before he sighed. "His balance was still alive at that time and living with him."

Yugi tensed at that. "What do you mean 'still alive at that time'?"

Raphael shot him a long look before turning back to the road. "Whatever was killing those people got her. Cecelia was only seventeen at the time and still had her whole life ahead of her. She shouldn't have died of a heart attack, her position protected her from that, but she did. And that was four years ago."

Yugi let out a quiet curse, turning to look out of his window, his eyes wide. A reaper's balance was often the only thing that stopped them from becoming murderers or going insane, both of which eventually led to being forced into the afterlife to keep the people of Earth safe. Yugi remembered having to hunt down a rogue reaper who had decided that humanity needed to be purged of darkness, shivering at the memory. It was one of his memories that he would have rather forgotten, the years he spent tracking Dartz over two continents. It was also one of the only times that he thought that he had found his balance, but he had been mistaken then as he had been before.

He sighed, glancing out of the corner of his eye at the other two reapers. "What happened to Maximillion?"

"He went insane." Raphael shrugged. "We didn't even realize any of this until we got the report that he had followed one of the souls to the afterlife. But that left us without a cover in Fairwater and no other reaper is willing to touch it."

"Because of their balances?"

"Yep." Alister took up the narrative again. "If Cecelia was able to be killed by a random heart attack, then who knows what could happen to their balances, living or dead."

"Which is why you called me."

Alister winced. "Sorry, Yugi, but you're the only reaper who doesn't have a balance and who has the experience that we need."

Yugi rubbed his hands over his face, suddenly regretting coming to America. Seto had promised that it would just be a researching job, but it was turning out to be more than that. He had to face a streak of deaths and something that could kill those who were protected by the reapers. He had a feeling that he would be here for a long time, hating himself for leaving Sugoroku behind in the first place. The elderly man needed him there at the shop, not chasing down something that was supposed to be impossible. "Alright, anything else I should know?"

"Fairwater is a ghost place." Yugi's eyes went wide for a moment, watching Alister nod. "Yeah, a lot of souls prefer not to take the afterlife on their first chance and wait out the year, maybe longer. We don't know why, but they just like to gather there. I'm trying to work out a more concrete theory about this than 'it's a place of high emotion'."

Yugi nodded, shivering and rubbing his arm. He was lucky that Domino wasn't a place that ghosts liked to hang out; ghosts preferred to live near where they had died or places with lots of emotion. The reapers were no closer to understanding ghosts than the humans were, but that was mostly because the animosity between the two groups. Most reapers believed with all of their being that all souls should go into the afterlife at some point and some would take it upon themselves to sends the ghosts into the afterlife even if they didn't want to go. Most ghosts just avoided reapers on principle, and that suited Yugi just fine.

"Don't worry, the Fairwater ghosts are alright. There's none of that old world stigmata that we're the Devil's henchmen." Alister gave him a smile, Yugi hesitantly returning it.

He turned back around in his seat to watch the scenery roll by, turning over the information in his head. There was something in Fairwater, a favorite gathering spot of ghosts, that could kill a reaper's balance and it struck without purpose or pattern. Yugi doubted that he could just wander into the local library at Fairwater and find what he wanted, but it seemed like the best option.

Yugi pushed his bangs away from his face, resting his forehead against the cool glass, closing his eyes. If they had waited four years since their last reaper to call for him, he assumed that this wasn't an urgent deal, he could take the time he needed to recover from whatever funk that he was in. But some part of him wouldn't let him stand by and just watch people die. It was the part that Yugi suspected that Seto had learned to turn off all those years ago.

He held back a chuckle at the thought of his boss, remembering that he would have to report back to Seto on his whereabouts. He was the only one that Seto could talk to about their world, the world of cavemen and giant animals. And Yugi missed it at times, and he could tell that Seto did too by the way the other brought it up every once and a while. It wasn't enough to base a friendship on, but at least it was something that linked them together other than work.

Yugi pressed his forehead harder against the glass for a moment longer before sitting back, closing his eyes and hoping that a nap would help with the growing headache.

* * *

Yami hovered at the back of the crowd, clutching his coat closer to his body as he shivered in the light drizzle. He looked over the crowd; all of them huddled under their umbrellas, paying rapt attention to the priest who was speaking, the man standing twisted to the side so the Bible wouldn't get wet. Yami couldn't help but smile at that, shaking his head a moment later.

He glanced over to one side with a shiver. He didn't know why he came to these funerals, he didn't know most of the people well and he didn't like to be out in the graveyard. But he still felt like he had to be out here, just because he was a part of this town. Besides, he didn't have much else to do with his long lunch break.

Yami sighed and dropped his chin, glancing to the side as he felt someone tug at his sleeve, raising an eyebrow at the shaky businessman who was standing beside him. "Hello, I'm Arthur Warrington." The man waited until Yami nodded before continuing, reaching over Yami's shoulder to point at a sobbing woman in the group. "Could you tell my wife that I love her? I've tried but…"

He stared at the businessman for a moment, tempted to shake his head. It would be so easy to just say no and walk away, to drop off the flowers by her grave and get out of here before he was noticed. But he couldn't, he couldn't deny a request like that, especially when he hadn't been able to say good-bye himself. Yami sighed and nodded, ignoring the happy smile on Arthur's face as he walked to the group, slipping a bit in the mud.

Carefully, he edged his way over to Mrs. Warrington, resting a hand on her arm. She turned to look at him, her eyes wide for a moment before she relaxed. Yami could see her trying to remember his name, giving her a soft smile to discourage her. It didn't matter who he was in the end, he was just here to deliver a message and leave. "Arthur says that he loves you."

"He…Did he say anything else?"

Yami shook his head, turning to leave when he felt someone grab onto his arm, tensing. He turned his head, glaring at the man who was holding his arm, trying to yank it away. The man just let out a low laugh before giving him a shove, Yami stumbling backward and almost falling over. He managed to catch himself before he fell backwards into the mud, staring up at the other man in surprise.

Mrs. Warrington was glancing between Yami and the man who had shoved him, obviously about to say something when the man glared at her. "You should know better, encouraging his kind. And you," Yami tensed as the man rounded on him, "I don't know who you are, but you should be ashamed of doing this and a funeral too. She's grieving and you're bringing fake messages to her. Get out of here!"

Yami scrambled back up the slope, hunching his shoulders and ignoring the ghost of Arthur Warrington that waited for him at the top of the small hill, probably ready to apologize, but Yami wasn't ready to listen. He pushed past the ghost, walking quickly towards one grave. He had been down this path so many times he didn't even need to think about where he was going, staring at the ground as he slogged through the mud.

That was exactly why he tried to avoid funerals, he would try to help out someone and get shoved away. It wasn't his fault that he could see ghosts and it wasn't his fault that he knew how much a single word from a departed loved one could mean. But the rest of the world saw it as him trying to get something for himself, trying to pull the wool over their eyes to watch them suffer.

Yami sighed, looking back down the hill at where the rest of the funeral was. They would be down there for a long time yet, and he had to get back to work. Yami rubbed the back of his neck before turning to look at the neat line of headstones that he stood by. He carefully made his way down the row until he came to one towards the middle, crouching on the ground so he could reach out and trace the letters engraved into the stone.

Tèa Gardener.  
Beloved daughter and wife.

He sighed and rocked back onto his heels, glancing at the mound of earth before shaking his head. "Yeah, I know, back again. Sad, isn't it? Can't go two days without visiting." He gave the headstone a soft smile before shaking his head. "You're not even here, you'd come out and talk to me or I'd see you. I know you're not here and yet I still come here and talk. I guess this is me trying to be normal."

As usual, there was no response, Yami sighing and running a hand through his hair, looking around at the quiet spot that he was in, finding himself relaxing. There were no ghosts here, there never had been. They avoided it for some reason, kept far away from the fifteen graves, all of them laid out in three neat rows of five. He looked over at the grave next to Tèa's, one belonging to a Cecelia Pegasus. He remembered her, the quiet blonde that had come into the library while her husband was out at work. He had enjoyed her company, enjoyed having someone living there to ease the silence.

He had been at her funeral when she had died, standing at the edges of the crowd as usual, but staying for the entire time instead of sneaking away towards the end. And then, he had been the first one pulled in for questioning when her husband had disappeared. Yami winced at the memory. Ever since that night on Holloway Road, the one night that he couldn't remember, he had been the first suspect in every case.

Yami stood up, tucking his hands into his pockets as he walked back down to the parking lot. No matter how long he thought about it, he wouldn't recall the events from that night, he blanked out between when he got onto Holloway Road and waking up in the hospital the next day. There were a few things he knew, like he knew that he had broken his arm and crashed the car. He knew that Joey had found him. And he knew that Tèa hadn't survived the crash. But he only knew those things because Joey and others had told him as he was lying in his hospital bed.

He stopped by his car, taking out his keys and unlocking the old vehicle; absently giving the dashboard a pat. Whatever had happened, it had made the police suspicious about him, but he still couldn't get Joey to talk about it. The blond seemed to be embarrassed by the topic. So he would have to deal with not remembering and being hauled into the police station for the rest of his life, Yami rubbing a hand over his face before pulling out of the parking lot, suddenly looking forward to the quiet of the library.

The road down the hill to the main street of Fairwater was clear, Yami pulling out and just coasting down the hill, braking enough to make the sometimes sharp curves. He hummed to himself as he went down, finding himself relaxing the further he got away from the cemetery. Most of the ghosts stayed there, just because it was close to their bodies. Yami had never found a reason that more ghosts didn't venture into the town. He had only gotten a mumbled response once about Maximillion Pegasus before the ghost had moved off. But Maximillion was gone, and the ghosts still didn't go into town. He shook his head, braking again as he finally got to the outside limits of the town, breathing a sigh of relief.

Now he was safe.

Something tapped against his leg, Yami tensing before glancing down, a used water bottle tapping against his leg before sliding under his seat. He grumbled to himself, looking up slowly to the road again, only to find himself staring at a wide eyed young man who was crossing the road.

"Shit!" He slammed on the brakes, bracing himself as the car rocked to a stop, Yami feeling his heart pounding faster. Yami swallowed harshly, his sweaty hands sliding over the steering wheel before he managed to get a better grip, staring back at the man that he had almost run over. He leaned over, rolling down the window trying to keep himself calm, but he couldn't stop flashing back to him driving onto Holloway Road and then waking to being told that his wife was dead. "S-sorry."

"Watch where you're driving, yeah?" He blinked at the accent, belated recognizing it as Japanese. And then he was watching the man walk across the street and onto the sidewalk on the other side. Yami stared at him for a while before taking his foot off the pedal, feeling himself shaking badly.

On automatic pilot, he continued to drive through town, making two right turns and then a left to get to the small building that was the library, driving through the small alley on the side to get to the parking spaces in the back. Yami pulled into his usual spot, turning off the car and unbuckling his seatbelt before letting out a shaky sob, leaning forward so that his forehead was resting on the steering wheel.

He couldn't believe that he had been that stupid. He should have learned not to look away from the road. He should have learned to just ignore things when they knocked against him. Yami gritted his teeth and tightened his grip on the steering wheel, sucking in a deep breath to calm himself.

And it had been so close.

What if he had hit the guy? Yami wasn't sure he would have been able to live with himself after that. He was already living with the guilt that he had killed Tèa; no matter how many times Joey tried to convince him that it wasn't true. It didn't help that everyone else in the town thought it was true.

Today he could have added one more person on that list, and that would have been one more ghost to haunt him.


	4. Digging Deeper

** Chapter Three: Digging Deeper **

Yugi felt his nails digging into the palms of his hands, trying to get himself to calm down, but it was hard to. Some idiot had almost run him over. And yet, when he had gone to yell at him, there hadn't been any anger. He had looked at the pitiful person behind the wheel of the car and let him off with a resigned warning. It wasn't until the car had left his line of sight that he had actually gotten mad, the deep anger that he realized that he had been dealing with since he had seen that man kill that girl back in Domino. Yugi swallowed and forced himself to relax.

What he needed to do was just calm down and forget about that stuff. He was on a job here, to look through what little he could find at the library before beginning to question people from around the town. He shifted his backpack up on his back, taking some of the pressure off of his back, taking a deep breath.

At least it was a quiet town on the surface; he could see himself staying here for a little bit to recover whatever he was suffering from.

Yugi slowed for a moment, swallowing harshly before forcing himself to keep walking. If this was him beginning to go insane, he would have to tell his team so they could watch him. And, if it got too out of control, he would be sent to the afterlife and that would be the end of him. No one came back from the afterlife, he should know that. Once again, Dartz's insane grin came back to haunt him, Yugi ducking his head and exhaling shakily. He would give anything not to end up like that.

He turned a corner, glancing up at the signs on the buildings, smiling with relief as he spotted the one for the library, quickly walking towards it. He had begged to be let out close to the library. Raphael and Alister had promised to drop off his luggage at the small bed and breakfast in town. Yugi wanted to get as much done as he could before he collapsed from exhaustion; he was already running on so little sleep.

Yugi glanced both ways before jogging across the street, walking towards the library and feeling himself relax the closer he got to the building. He stopped himself before he had gone too far, surprised at the sudden lack of anger and exhaustion. Yugi glanced around before backing away from the library, his eyes going wide. To his knowledge, there was no reason why he should flip from being angry and tired to relaxed and calm. His hand dropped to the phone in his pocket before he forced himself to leave it alone. He would try to figure this out by himself and then he would call Ryou later.

Still unsure of the sensation, Yugi walked into the library, opening the door and glancing around before heading back for the computers, staring at the empty front desk. He hesitated for a moment, before shrugging. He would just keep checking back and wait to see if anyone turned up. Yugi fiddled with the strap of his backpack before walking over to the computers, sitting in one of the chairs and taking a deep breath, his eyes closing.

He had always loved libraries, they seemed like a naturally calming place. With the silence and the sensation of being surrounded by books, it felt like the world had slowed down, much more like the world that Yugi had been born into instead of this modern world of rushing. He leaned back in the chair, closing his eyes with a smile. While the strange sensation of extra calm still set him on edge, he was enjoying its affects now. In fact, he was close to falling asleep where he was.

"Oh…shit…" Yugi turned around at the familiar voice, his eyes widening as he stared at the man who had nearly run him over. To his surprise, his first thought was to walk over and hug the man, instead of the more rational anger that should have come. Yugi gripped the top of the chair, watching as the man stared at him for a moment more before turning and heading for the desk. He found himself analyzing the man, a habit gained from his long years of working with different humans.

The man was wearing faded jeans that were a bit loose on him and a nondescript sweatshirt with the name of what Yugi assumed was the man's college on it. The man's coat seemed well worn too, the man taking it off and draping it over his chair, giving Yugi a nervous glance. Yugi looked away, biting his lip and staring at the ground, forcing himself to stop before he started to go over how the man acted. That he was wearing loose clothes was enough to tell Yugi that he needed comfort. Yugi still shocked from the urge to go over and hug him. His grip tightened on the chair to prevent himself from moving.

"Can I help you?" Yugi started nearly falling out of his chair. He glanced up at the man before standing up and shuffling over to the desk, suddenly nervous.

"Uh…I need to use the computers."

He was waved away. "Go ahead, there's nothing special to do. Just get on and go."

"Thanks."

"Welcome." The man paused, his gaze darting down to the desk. "Sorry about earlier."

"Earlier?" Yugi blinked as he realized that he had forgotten about earlier as he stood there, blushing and looking away. That alone was another reminder to call Ryou as soon as he was settled for the night, something was going on here and it wasn't right. No one should have been able to influence him like this. He turned around and walked back to the computers, sitting down and quickly getting online, determined to see what he could find.

He threw a look over his shoulder before focusing completely on the screen in front of him, hesitating before typing 'Fairwater' into the search bar. Yugi expected to have to narrow his search, surprised when pertinent articles came up quickly, most of them having the work murder in them. He tipped his head to the side before clicking on the first link, preparing himself for a long afternoon.

The hours sped by quickly, Yugi lost in the series of articles from 1985 chronicling the murders and then trial of the killer, one Johnny Bartlett. Yugi shivered at all of the pictures that he found of the man, recognizing the same insane look that he had seen in Dartz.

He was pulled away from his work when he heard someone else come into the library, glancing back over his shoulder to see the red headed woman give a shy wave to the man behind the desk before walking over to the video section. Yugi stared at her before looking back at his watch, only then realizing how late it was. He sighed and gathered up his stuff, managing to get packed up as the woman reappeared and approached the man at the desk.

"Cutting it a bit late, Serenity?"

"I had stuff to finish up at the hospital." Serenity gave the man a smile, leaning on the desk with a sigh. "Sanders was out today because of the funeral."

Yugi frowned when he saw the man wince at the mention of a funeral, not quite sure how to take that. It was suspicious that the man looked guilty about something for a moment, the expression quickly replaced with a smile. He reached for the video that Serenity was checking out, scanning it in before turning to look at the screen. "Ah. Due in two weeks."

"Thanks, Yami."

"Anytime." Yami gave her a smile, freezing when something started beeping.

Yugi paused, hiking his backpack further onto his back and hesitantly stepping forward, looking between Yami and Serenity as the woman reached down to look at her beeper, her cell phone going off the next moment. Serenity quickly flipped it open. "Hello?"

Yugi could hear someone yelling over the phone line, Serenity biting her lip before nodding. "Alright. I'm about a block away. I'll be there as soon as possible."

She hung up the phone, Yami looking nervous from where he sat behind the desk. "What's going on?"

"Another one." Serenity ran a hand through her hair, quickly pulling it back into a ponytail. "Someone called in another one of those heart attacks at the Bed and Breakfast down the road."

"Another one?" Yami walked out from behind the desk at that, glancing around nervously before stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "But Arthur Warrington just died of one a day ago."

"Well, it's happened again." Serenity gave him a helpless shrug before picking up her video and stuffing it into her purse, walking out of the library, Yami following her to the doors. Yugi watched as the man looked outside, obviously trying to decide whether to stay or follow before looking back at him. Yugi jumped as their gazes met, hurriedly looking away. He frowned as he felt himself blush, not sure what to make of it. If anything he should be angry at Yami for almost running him over, not blushing and nervous. Yugi rubbed his forehead, trying to get himself to think around the block that Yami seemed to cause.

He looked up abruptly as he heard Yami walk out of the building, looking around nervously before following Yami out, glancing around before rushing after him. Some part of Yugi wondered if he was following Yami just because he didn't feel so off balance around the man; which Yugi thought was a laughable conclusion. He was following Yami because the other man knew his way around the town. Besides, Serenity had said something about another heart attack, something that had piqued Yugi's interest.

A stray article he had found while working through the many websites on Johnny Bartlett and his murdering spree had mentioned something about the increasing number of fatalities from heart attack in Fairwater, but it had only been in passing, Yugi frowning at that. If heart attacks were becoming as common as a cold then something was wrong, the problem was find out exactly what was going on.

Yugi came to a stop just before he ran into Yami, wincing at the carelessness on his part before looking up at the crowd that was gathered around the small bed and breakfast, surprised to see that the police was there too. He turned his attention quickly back to Yami as the man walked forward, heading straight for the police officer that seemed to be in charge. "Joey!"

The blonde turned, seeming surprised to see Yami there before smiling. "Hey bud."

"What's going on here?"

Joey rubbed the back of his neck and gave a sheepish smile. "Well, Serenity is in there now confirming things, but it's another heart attack. The call came in about five…ten minutes ago. Someone found her and called her in." Joey ran a hand through his hair with a long sigh. "I mean, I never expected Mrs. Kato to go down like that, even if she was in a wheelchair, she was probably healthier than I was."

"Oh God."

"Yeah, I know." Joey gave a little chuckle, only then seeming to realize how pale Yami had gotten. He frowned leaning over the caution tape to rest a hand on Yami's shoulder. "You alright, buddy?"

"Y-yes."

Even Yugi could tell that Yami was lying, the reaper raising an eyebrow as he watched Joey glance back towards the building. There was something there, but the blond didn't want to talk about it, so he ignored it for the time being. Yugi kept himself from groaning in annoyance, wrapping his arms around himself and rocking back and forth. He had been too late to even get anything from the scene, if there was anything to gather. He reached up to rub his forehead again, already dreading the headache that was sure to come.

If this was what Maximillian had to deal with, he didn't blame him for going insane, even when his balance had died. The lack of anything helpful would drive anyone insane.

Yugi jerked his head up as other officers began herding people away from the tape, one coming up to whisper in Joey's ear, the news obviously agitating the blond officer by the way he reacted. Yugi watched the hushed discussion carefully, raising an eyebrow as Joey motioned violently at everyone around before finally relenting, seeming to growl to himself.

Joey slipped under the tape, glancing at the crowd before gesturing for silence, cupping his hands around his mouth. "Listen everyone, we're gonna have to shut the place down." There were groans from the crowd, Joey pausing long enough to motion for the people to calm down before returning to his shouting. "Sorry folks, but the higher ups are demanding this, there's nothing we can do."

Yugi felt a spike of panic run up his spine. If that place was shutting down, would he be able to get his luggage back? Or, the more important, where was he going to stay for the night? He bit his lip, taking a step forward when someone else shouted from within the crowd. "What about the people staying there?"

"Listen, we're gonna take pictures and look over the luggage. Tomorrow, we'll call you in if we find anything questionable. Other than that, you'll be able to pick up your stuff tomorrow. As for where to stay," Joey shrugged with a sheepish smile, "I'm sure the good people of Fairwater would be willing to give these people a place in their homes for one night. If not, I'll ask you to follow me to the police station. We'll set up some stuff in one of the main rooms and have ourselves a little slumber party."

There were a few laughs from the crowd, Yugi slumping as they went their own ways. He stared up at the old building, a smile twitching at the corner of his mouth. Of course it would start out like this, he would get this far and then something would stop him. It was just like hunting Dartz all over again; except this time he didn't have Mana around to keep his spirits up. Yugi hung his head at the thought of Mana, biting his lip to hold back tears. He was always surprised by how much he missed her, especially after all the years that had passed.

He looked up as he heard the crowd beginning to disperse, catching a glimpse of Serenity coming out of the building. Yugi watched her for a moment before slumping, grabbing a hold of one of his backpack straps, and turning to walk down the street. He could always call Raphael and Alister and tell them that something had gone wrong; he doubted that the news would surprise them much. He doubted than any bad news concerning Fairwater would surprise them much.

Yugi rubbed a hand over his face, barely smothering a yawn. At this rate, he would collapse from exhaustion before the two reapers got there. He had slept on the streets before, and he wasn't looking forward to that again. Although, he was sure that repeating the action now would be a bit easier on his back and much better without Seto there to try and glare things into submission.

He was reaching for his cell phone when a hand landed on his shoulder, turning to face Yami. He blinked quickly in surprise, Yami looking equally as shocked as he did. Yami glanced down at the hand that was still on Yugi's shoulder before swallowing, taking a step back. "U-um. You need a place to stay?"

"Yes." Yugi narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

Yami seemed taken aback. "Well, you look exhausted and I nearly ran you over earlier. Consider it an apology."

"You don't know me and I don't know you. Why would you-"

"Because." Yami's voice trembled as he snapped out the word, seeming afraid of his own answer.

Yugi tipped his head to the side, his fingers tapping against the leg of his pants as he considered the situation. On the one hand, he could wait for Alister and Raphael to show up and crash with one of them. It would probably take him away from Fairwater because neither reaper had seemed keen on staying near a place that ghosts liked to gather. It would drastically shorten the time that he spent looking up stuff for this case, but he would be around people who knew him in a way. But, on the other hand, Yami was offering him a place in the town itself and it did seem like he was doing it out of the kindness of his heart.

His eyes narrowed, Yugi making sure to look away from Yami at that moment. But there was the strange pull towards Yami that he felt, not completely sure he could trust himself around Yami. And there was Yami's nervous behavior, the man very jumpy for some reason. But, he did seem to calm down when Yugi was around him, the behavior less jumpy. It didn't make sense in his own mind, and he could tell that it didn't make sense to Yami from the expression on the man's face. Still, the advantages far outweighed the disadvantages.

"Alright." Yugi nodded slowly, not sure what to make of the look of relief on Yami's face, slipping his hand into his pocket to close his hand over the shrunk down handle of his scythe. He relaxed as his fingers brushed over the wood, forcing a smile on his face. "Just don't try and run me over again."

"Oh, no." Yami shook his head, looking incredibly embarrassed at the reminder. "Definitely not."

"Good."

"I just have to close up…" Yami trailed off and walked away quickly, Yugi raising an eyebrow and looking back at the bed and breakfast before shrugging and following after Yami. With everything weird going on, Yami's behavior wasn't too bad. The important question was why was he worried about it? Yami didn't mean anything to him; he was just another human in Fairwater. And, when Yugi left, Yami would stay here and forget about him immediately.

He trailed Yami back to the library; standing in the doorway and watching Yami close up. For a moment, he wanted to jump in and help somehow, Yugi guessing that the impulse had been programmed into him after having worked for Sugoroku for so long. He smiled at the thought, tipping his head back and staring at the ceiling. That was another thing to do when he had the chance, call Sugoroku and check up on how the shop was going. Of course, that would only happen after he called Seto and reported everything that was going on. The others had to know that there was something that could kill a balance and spread the news around.

If Yugi had learned anything in his life, it was the powers that governed the afterlife did not have control over much and their hold on what little they controlled was tenuous at best.

Yugi looked up as Yami walked back over, giving him an apologetic smile before walking out of the door, locking it behind him. The two walked back to where Yami's car was parked, Yugi sliding into the passenger's seat and watching as Yami got in. He forced his gaze away from his host as Yami pulled out of the parking spot, drove down the alley and into the main street.

For a moment, he was worried when Yami heading the opposite direction of where most of the houses were, turning to look over his shoulder at the bright lights of the town. His stomach churned uncomfortably, Yugi wondering just what he had gotten himself into.

"I live on the other side of town." Yugi jerked back around to look at Yami, the other man glancing at him before returning his attention to the road. "On the line of hills there. That's where most of the residential people stay. The rest of that stuff is for the people who come down here for their vacation or have just moved here."

"You get a lot of people coming here?"

"Not as many as we would like." Yami gave a nervous laugh. "Most people tend to stay away because of what they've heard."

"Johnny Bartlett?" Yugi noticed that Yami's hands tightened on the steering wheel as he nodded, humming to himself and leaning back, staring at the sunset. When he sat back and looked at it, Fairwater was a nice place. It might have even been relaxing if he hadn't been worried about what was going on. And Seto expected him to be using this as his vacation. Yugi shook his head, rolling it against the headrest to look at Yami. "I don't think we were ever introduced. I'm Yugi."

Yami raised an eyebrow. "Just Yugi?"

Yugi blushed at that. "Well, Yugi Mutou, I guess."

"You guess?"

"My parents died when they were younger." The lie slid easily off his tongue. "And Sugoroku adopted me when I was young, named me too." Another lie, he had named himself. "I lived with him since then."

Yami nodded, Yugi relaxing a fraction at that. It was sad how well that lie worked, his usual standard lie. He guessed that the simplicity of it helped make it more believable. All he had to remember to do was to adjust for his new name for the century or if he had moved out of a country recently. Although, he had been Yugi Mutou for over a century now, their group having finally settled down in Japan when the jobs of the reapers became more structured and bureaucratic. There was even a chain of command now, although Yugi had never bothered to memorize it. He just answered to Seto and would leave it up to the brunette to worry about the rest of things.

He smiled to himself at the thought of the family that he had adopted. He had started that game shop with the first in the Mutou family, the young boy that he had adopted from the streets. And, while he had never told the Mutous specifically what he was they all knew that he was immortal. Yugi assumed that they just figured he was some god come to earth or some supernatural creature, either one was fine with him; just as long as he could stay with them. He had gotten attached to the mortals, especially Sugoroku.

"Well then, I'm Yami."

Yugi snorted, trying to hide the fact that Yami's introduction had surprised him. "Just Yami?"

"Well, Yami Gardener, I guess." Yami gave a long sigh at that, his eyes never leaving the road.

"You guess?"

"My wife passed away five years ago."

"Oh…"

"Yeah. Originally, I was Yami Sennen, but I couldn't stand the last name." Yami's hands tightened on the wheel. "My family nearly chased my mother out of their house when they found out that she was pregnant with me, and my father took her in. She always insisted on me keeping the name of my family and reminding me that I would carry on the line, but I couldn't, not after hearing about how they had treated her."

"Are they…"

"No." Yami gave a laugh at that, Yugi relieved that the sound broke the tension in the car. "No. Dad's an archeologist. As soon as I was able to stand on my own I was able to convince them to take that vacation. Well, working vacation. They call me every once and a while when they remember." He gave a soft smile. "It's like a second honeymoon for them."

Yugi nodded, turning to look out of the window and feeling the conversation die out. He had never been good at talking to people, whether he was alive or dead. But, surprisingly, the silence in the car was comfortable. He smiled to himself, propping up his chin on his hand and watching the hills as they climbed further up towards the houses. He turned his head slightly as he heard Yami humming to himself, enjoying the sound.

The humming stopped abruptly as they passed by an intersection, Yugi glancing back at Yami. His host was opening staring at the entrance to the road, looking pale. As suddenly as he had stopped, Yami turned back around, the humming returning but sounding more forced. Yugi frowned and turned to catch a glimpse of the road's name, wondering why Yami had reacted that badly. He shrugged, trying to see what he could of the road in the dimming light, flinching at the winding trail that barely looked wide enough for one car. That was enough to scare any driver.

Yugi sighed to himself and settled back; paying close attention to when Yami's humming went back to a normal sound, guessing that they had passed whatever Yami had feared. He glanced over at his host, tapping his fingers against his leg before pushing all of the thoughts out of his mind. If he kept this up, he wouldn't be able to sleep, and he was so tired from his flight over.

He rubbed his eyes, pausing as he heard Yami laugh. "I'm guessing you're set on heading to bed."

"Yeah, long flight over from Japan."

"Japan?"

"Didn't the name give it away?"

"No. I'm just amazed that you're still standing."

Yugi found himself laughing at that, leaning back as he saw Yami smiling. Maybe he had been too quick to judge this human; maybe Yami was just socially awkward as he was. If that was the case, then there was nothing to worry about. He was just staying with the human for a night, or however long that it took the police to get what they wanted. He had been around too long to believe that everything could be done in one day like Joey had said, it would take a while. Of course, with Joey's charisma, the crowd would happily accept everything he said.

"Hey." A gentle touch to his shoulder made him start, Yugi sitting up abruptly and watching Yami shrink back, the man looking frightened for a moment. Yami gathered himself together quickly though, offering him a smile. "We're here."

"Oh thank God." Yugi climbed out of the car, ignoring the soft chuckle from Yami. He reached back into the car to grab his backpack, turning to stare up at the house.

It was a nice house, two stories with a wrap around porch, something that any newly wed couple would have wanted if they were expecting children. Yugi glanced over at his host, realizing that he hadn't asked about his family. Yami could have children and Yugi didn't ask. Having raised nearly five generations of Mutous, he knew how proud a father could be. He sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, about to ask the question when Yami opened the door and ushered him in, Yugi toeing off his shoes in the entrance hall. "Guest room is upstairs, to the right, third door. Bathroom is right across the hall."

Yugi nodded, glancing around, noting that none of the usual signs of children were there. He gave Yami one last glance before deciding that the question could wait until tomorrow when he was more awake. Yugi trudged up the stairs, following Yami's directions into the modestly sized bedroom. He looked around long enough to identify where the bed was before setting his backpack on the floor and collapsing into the bed, not bothering to draw the covers over him.

* * *

_"In twenty blood-soaked minutes twelve people were shot and murdered at the Fairwater hospital and sanitarium. Victims ranged from patients able to walk and those trapped in their bed to doctors and visitors to the hospital itself. Even those who sought shelter in the chapel were gunned down on their knees._

_"The murderer himself was caught on the scene, a hospital orderly named Johnny Bartlett. When captured and questioned by the police, he only stated that 'I got me twelve, that one more than Starkweather.'_

_"In 1957 and early 1958, Starkweather had succeeded in killing eleven people in a cross country murdering spree. Police tried to learn more from Johnny Bartlett, the orderly only insisting that the incident must make him public enemy number one._

_"Also arrested was the daughter of the hospital administrator, the young girl Vivian Ann Wong. Vivian was madly in love with Bartlett-"_

"That's her!" Serenity leaned forward, pausing the screen on the image of a young girl being pushed through a jeering crowd of reporters. She stared at the girl, recognizing the eyes and the facial structure before sitting back with a long sigh. "I was at her house…"

"What were you doing there?" Serenity turned around, smiling as Tristan walked out of the bathroom, finishing tying the towel around his waist. He turned to stare at the screen, raising an eyebrow before reaching down to look at the DVD case that was on the bed, staring at the title. "Why would you get this?"

Serenity reached out to take the case, flipping in over in her hands as she sighed. "I was up at her house today because Doctor Sanders was at the funeral. Her mother said some things…and I've been gone from Fairwater so long. I mean, I knew that there had been murders here, but nothing else, Mom got me out and refused to talk to me about it. So I just wanted to know."

"Why didn't you ask Joey?"

She shot him an amused look. "Like he would tell me. He still thinks I'm his innocent little sister."

Tristan laughed at that, lounging back on the bed beside her, a smile on his face. "Yeah, I'll give him that. I half expected him to come bursting into the room to save you on our honeymoon."

"Oh, I would have killed him for that." Serenity leaned over to cup his face in her hands, placing a kiss on his lips and pulling away when Tristan leaned up for more. "I only have a few minutes left. You can wait."

"Serenity…"

"Come on. A few minutes and then I promise, I'm yours." Tristan pretended to grumble, Serenity reaching down to hold his hand as she turned to hit the play button, the documentary starting again.

_"Bartlett was sentenced to the electric chair and remained unrepentant to the end. His last words were even reported to be, 'I got me a score of twelve, beat that.'_

_"In what seemed like a miscarriage of justice, Vivian Wong got a mere ten years in prison before she was granted a conditional release by the governor. Today, she lives a peaceful life in the family home."_

Serenity turned off the television with a sigh, placing the remote on the bedside table before rolling over towards Tristan with a smile on her face, one hand reaching for the tie on her nightgown. "Alright, done."

Tristan shivered, glancing up at her. "Seeing that, I suddenly don't think it's a good idea to live here."

"Oh, stop it. We're fine. I'm one of the senior doctors at the hospital and you have a job beating math into the heads of high schoolers."

"Beating sounds about right." Tristan laughed, the sound getting cut off as Serenity leaned over to kiss him. He reached up to wrap his arms around his wife, pulling her down on top of him. Serenity laughed into the kiss as Tristan trailed a hand down her side, the touch slightly ticklish. "They are quite…inattentive."

"Well, let me make it better." Serenity sat up, completely undoing the tie on her robe and letting it slide from her body, Tristan letting out a low whistle of approval before sitting up to run his hands over his wife's body. Serenity shivered at the kisses that he placed over her collarbone, leaning over to kiss the top of his head before she leaned back, allowing him to do what he wished. She felt him smile against her skin for a moment, about to ask him what he was planning when the lamp on the nightstand tumbled to the ground.

Serenity jumped at that, Tristan sitting up immediately and wrapping his arms around her. They both stared at the lamp, Tristan frowning and slipping from the bed, stripping from his towel and pulling on boxers and a robe before wandering over to look at the lamp. Serenity pulled her robe back on as well, tying it as she leaned down to look at the lamp. "Was this near the edge?"

"No." Serenity whispered the word, jumping when the lights started flickering. Tristan was immediately by her side, looking around before pushing her towards the door.

"Out." She scrambled off of the bed, seeing a shadow move across the wall before she ducked, gasping as one of the lamp shards crashed into the wall in front of her. Tristan pushed at her back, urging her downstairs. "Out, out, out!"

Serenity took off at a run, nearly tumbling down the stairs. The shards of lamp continued to be thrown, smashing into walls. She ducked around the corner, inching along the wall to the kitchen before diving for cover behind the counter. She peeked over the edge only long enough to grab the phone before rushing back towards the foyer, spotting Tristan standing with the door open, motioning her out. Serenity sprinted faster, feeling something grabbing at her ankles before reaching for her robe, kicking the thing away before rushing out of the house and out onto the sidewalk.

Tristan slammed the door behind her, leaning against it and panting. Serenity turned to look back at their house, shaking as he dialed her brother's cell phone and waited for him to answer. She jumped when she heard Joey's sleepy voice over the speakers. "Hello?"

"Joey? Oh my God, Joey, I'm so glad I got you."

Her brother immediately perked up. "What's the matter, Serenity? Has Tristan done something to you?"

"What?" The sudden jump to a different subject flummoxed her for a moment, Serenity finally grasping what her brother was talking about and shaking her head. "No. No! There was something in our house."

"Something…in your house."

"Yes. Something knocked the lamp off the stand and then started turning the lights on and off." She turned to look at their house, watching the lights flicker on and off throughout the house, moving from room to room. "It's still doing this now."

"Serenity…"

"I didn't imagine it, Joey. That thing threw pieces of lamp at us. Tristan saw it too!" She clutched the phone more tightly to her ear, reaching out for Tristan's hand as he wandered over and holding it tightly. Her husband kissed her forehead before wrapping her in a hug, Serenity leaning against him as she waited for Joey to answer.

She heard him sigh over the phone and the slight squeak of the chair as Joey leaned back. "Listen, Serenity, the one you want to call is Yami."

"Yami?"

"Yeah. He's got some special skill with this or something. I don't know, he won't tell me outright, but I believe him."

"Seriously, Joey?"

"Seriously. I've had him tagging along on a case and he's been able to find stuff that I've missed. It's like he pulls it out of the air. If you have something supernatural going on, call Yami."

"Alright Joey. Can you give me his number?" Serenity held her breath; memorizing the numbers and repeating them back to Joey a couple of times before thanking her brother and hanging up. She tapped the phone against her hand for a bit, before looking back to their house. Whatever that thing was, it was still there. She took a deep breath before dialing the number, leaning back into Tristan's embrace and waiting for Yami to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Yami!" She didn't let him speak, rambling on as quickly as she could. "There's something in our house and it's turning the lights on and off and trying to hurt us. We're outside and safe for now, but we want to get back in and we don't know when or if it'll come out. I called Joey and he said to call you."

"Joey said…Damn it!" There was a dull thud in the background, Serenity glancing up at their house before realizing that it had come from Yami's end. She bit her lip as she heard harsh breathing on the other end of the line before a long sigh. "Listen, I'll be over as soon as I can. Keep the phone with you and I'll have my cell phone. If it's not safe, move. I'll call you on this number as soon as I take care of it."

"Thank you. Thank you so much."

"Welcome." Yami hung up abruptly, Serenity pulling the phone away from her ear and staring at it before hanging up as well.

She gave a long sigh, looking up at Tristan. He smiled back down at her, squeezing her close for a moment. "We'll be fine."

"I hope so."


	5. Perchance to Dream

** Chapter Four: Perchance to Dream **

Yami hung up the phone and stared at it, taking a step back before turning on his heel and shoving his cell phone into the pocket of his jeans. He gave the upstairs a quick glance, wincing at the thought of leaving his guest all alone before quickly jotting down a note and grabbing his car keys. Hopefully Yugi would just sleep through his absence and then he wouldn't have to make up an excuse for where he had been. He was horrible at lying.

He locked the door behind him before running to his car and starting it up. From here he had two ways he could go, he could take the longer road back to town or risk the shortcut. Yami tensed at the thought of driving on Holloway Road, gritting his teeth and shutting his eyes.

_"Yami, look out!"_

No, he still couldn't do it. His hands tightened on the steering wheel. He couldn't face that place just yet.

Yami shook his head, sending the car into reverse and pulling out of the driveway. He took a deep breath before switching to drive and pressing his foot against the gas pedal. After hearing how frightened that Serenity was, there was no way he couldn't go, not even knowing how much he would regret this. But he had already talked to one ghost today; another one wouldn't be too bad.

He let out a slow breath as he got onto the main road, pushing just over the speed limit. No matter how fast he wanted to get there, the fear held him back. The fear of driving too fast, the fear of Holloway Road, the fear of himself; too many fears to count. And, hovering above it all was the fear that he would find out what really happened that night on Holloway Road. For now, he was content with his memory blank on that night, he didn't need to remember the little things. It would only hurt more than it did now. But, if there was something there, or if he had really killed Tèa… Yami shook his head, trying to get that thought of his mind. He wouldn't have killed her, she was his best friend.

Yami looked up as he passed Holloway Road, trying not to look down it and try and see the curve where he had lost control of the car. Tèa's ghost wouldn't be standing there either, just like she wasn't at the cemetery. But there would be others, the ones that he saw every time that he passed the road, staring at him and holding out their arms, begging for the help that he couldn't give. He rolled his shoulders forward, hunching forward in his seat. It wouldn't help; he knew that, they all knew that he could see him, even if they were newly dead. All the ghosts knew that he could see them.

At least they knew not to bother him in the town or the neighborhood. There must have been some unwritten rule of conduct that they only bothered him in the cemetery or when he walked onto their haunting ground. And even then they were polite, never really asking for much.

He gave a shaky sigh, only relaxing when he was a good distance from Holloway Road. Yami glanced back through the rearview mirror before jerking his gaze back to the road straight ahead of him as he tensed again. He had never realized how jumpy he had gotten in the five years since Tèa had died. Of course, it had come around through good reasons, at least ten trips to the police station for various disappearances where he was a suspect and at least twenty when Joey thought he could get information about the case from a ghost. Then there was the daily interaction with ghosts, Yami too used to pretending that he wasn't paying attention to what most people thought was thin air as he listened to a conversation.

And he had never realized any of this until he had met Yugi today…or nearly run into him. Yami bit his lip, looking around the dark streets as he tried to find the one Serenity lived on. He hadn't noticed how twitchy or jumpy he was. He still didn't know why he had offered the man a place to stay. He didn't know Yugi beyond what little that the man had told him on the ride to his house, and that had been after he had made the offer. Yami drummed his fingers against the steering wheel of his car, if his behavior suddenly changed, then it was something paranormal. He had lived with ghosts long enough to know that.

The thought was pushed out of his head as he saw Serenity waving at him from the sidewalk. He raised an eyebrow before pulling up to the sidewalk and getting out of the car, glancing back at the house as he watched the lights flicker on and off. "Ah."

"Yeah. Can you help?"

Yami looked back at her, noticing that Tristan didn't look at sure. He shrugged, shoving his hands into his pockets and walking up to the house. "I'll see what I can do."

He walked up the path to the front door, testing it to see if it was unlocked before pulling it open and walking into the foyer of the house. Yami glanced around; waving to the two outside before the door was slammed shut, raising an eyebrow at the haggard ghost that was leaning on the door. "I knew you would come. The others said you would."

Yami sighed and leaned back against the wall. "What do you want?"

The ghost looked around nervously before sitting on the ground, Yami not bothering to give up his place on the higher ground. He still had a scar on his arm from that one ghost who had pretended to be lost and frightened before trying to kill Yami. He winced at that thought, resisting the urge to rub the old scar. He had learned since then.

Yami looked back down at the ghost, waving him on. The ghost slumped before rubbing a hand over his face. "It's getting bad. Everyone knows that something is going on. And we know that something is here. We try to stay close to the places where the people are already dead because it doesn't go there!"

"What are you talking about?"

The ghost continued like he hadn't heard him, hugging his legs to himself. "We see it sometimes, sneaking through the town and we know that death is coming. So we hide and listen for the sirens and welcome the next soul if they chose to follow their body. There are some that are taking advantage of this, pushing for something like a security ring around the graveyard, but they won't be able to stop it. We've got someone watching out for us, but it won't be enough. It can kill us."

Yami tensed at the thought of something killing ghosts, shaking the idea out of his head before leaning forward. "I don't know what you are talking about."

"You don't?" The ghost jerked his head up, looking up at Yami in shock. "But, you would be able to see it too! We thought you would be able to…and you're the only one who can help us with this."

"Sorry, I have no idea what you are talking about." He shrugged, glancing toward the door. "I was just called because my friends didn't like you in the house."

"I was just trying to protect them." The ghost whimpered, curling up around itself. "I saw it on the man, the mark. So I came here to scare it away. I can still feel it here. You could too if you tried." The ghost paused, staring at Yami before shaking his head. "But you don't want to. You just know you can see us and don't look beyond that."

The ghost stood up, giving Yami a disgusted look. "You could have saved them. All of them."

Yami lunged forward and grabbed the ghost by the arm and pulled him close, eyes narrowed in anger. The ghost stared at him in shock, trying to get away, but Yami wouldn't let him go. "What did you say?"

"You're the only human who can see it. You could stop it and save them, but you're too busy with other things."

"It's called life." Yami gave the ghost a shove away from him. "It's something that the living have to deal with. And, if I can see whatever this is, why haven't I? I've been at all of the funerals and then most of the crime scenes because of what happened to my wife."

"It wouldn't stay, it's not stupid."

Yami shook his head, going back to leaning against the wall and trying to get his temper back. The thought that all of it had been his fault, all of the deaths and the thought that he could have stopped it just made him want to punch something. He had been through a lot in his life, didn't he deserve a break. And then all he got was the death of his best friend and the ability to see ghosts and get roped into the problems of those that didn't want to go into the afterlife.

"There's something else." Yami looked up at the ghost again, watching as the ghost began to pace. "They've sent another reaper."

"Another what?"

"Reaper." The ghost paused to look at him, seeming annoyed. "But I see that you haven't been told about those either. There was one once in this town before, trying to figure out what was going on, but he went away. We thought that it was over after that, the reapers tend to avoid Fairwater. But another one came in. It needs to go away."

"Why?"

The ghost looked uncomfortable, glancing around before shaking his head. "I can't stay any longer; they've started a curfew for the cemetery to keep us all safe."

Yami lunged after the ghost, only to miss it as it started to phase out of the house. "Wait? What's doing this, and what's a reaper?"

The ghost was gone, Yami staring after him with a look of shock on his face. He pulled his arm back after a moment, staring at the empty space in front of him before stumbling backwards and into the wall. Yami swallowed nervously and ran his hand over his face, feeling it tremble. Of all the things that the ghost could have told him, that had to be the worst. He didn't know how to stop whatever was killing these people, even if it was something that he could stop. And he doubted that very much.

The ghosts seemed to think that because he was living he could help them with their problems, but he couldn't. He was just a freak who could see them and comfort them about their problems. Yami sighed, sliding down the wall to sit on the floor with his head in his hands. He stayed there, taking a few calming breaths before pushing off of the floor and walking towards the door.

As soon as he opened it, Serenity rushed towards him, looking over his shoulder. "Is it gone?"

"What?" Yami blinked and looked back at the house, blushing as he remembered why he had come there in the first place. "Oh, yeah, it left."

"Thank you!" He grunted as he was pulled into a hug, holding himself stiff until Serenity let go. He gave her a shaky smile before reaching out to shake Tristan's hand.

"It was nothing. You two don't have to worry about anything now…" Yami frowned and trailed off, turning to stare at Tristan's forehead, his mouth dropping open. Carved into Tristan skin was the number thirty-seven, Yami taking a step forward to stare at the glowing number before remembering himself. He blushed and quickly let go, mumbling a good-bye to the both of them before shuffling back to his car. He was sure that Tristan muttered something about his strange behavior, but he was too busy worrying about that number.

That ghost had said something about a mark, but that couldn't be it. Yami swallowed and glanced up into the rearview mirror, rubbing his fingers over his forehead before sitting back with a long sigh, feeling himself begin to shake. He tried to get himself back under control, reaching up to grip the steering wheel. He could afford to break down now, he had to get back home and discuss this with the others. If anything, they would know about what was going on here.

Yami swallowed and started the car, feeling a bit more shaky than normal. He didn't want to deal with any more ghosts; he just wanted to go to bed and try to forget that all of this happened. But had a feeling that his friends would be bugging him about why he had been out so late and, especially when he had brought someone home without warning them. He rubbed a hand over his face, pulling away from the sidewalk and beginning the drive back to his house. For a moment, he contemplated turning the radio on but he decided it was better to just try and think he was through this.

He just couldn't help but wish that he was with Yugi again.

Yami jerked slightly at that thought, surprised by the conviction that was behind the thought. He had barely known the man for a day and he was thinking of him as a kind of safe haven. Yami shivered, concentrating on the road ahead of him. If none of this had happened to him before he had met Yugi, he would have classified it as strange. Now it was just another thing to look into, like this business with the reaper.

Was it possible that he had just heard the ghost wrong? To his knowledge a reaper was just an idea that the medieval people of Europe had created to represent death. And, there was only one, there couldn't be multiple deaths. So why had the ghost spoken like there was more than one?

Yami ducked his head with an annoyed sigh, looking up through his bangs. Maybe it would be easier to puzzle out why he liked Yugi so suddenly than the cryptic remark about the reaper. He gave a long sigh, tempted to tip his head back and bang it against the head rest, but he resisted that urge.

Maybe it wasn't anything but lust. After all, he hadn't dated anyone or seen anyone in that fashion for eight years; staying away from that while he had been married to Tèa and then avoided all physical contact with people afterward. That was probably it. He nearly ran over an attractive young man and, with the adrenaline still running through his system, invited him back to his house. And that was as far as his libido had gotten before his mind had taken over, which had just started him into this mess.

That was it, that had to be it. He was just imagining the feeling of calm normality to try and make a logical reason when all he wanted was a good fuck. That thought alone made him groan and shake his head. He felt like he was in high school again when he thought like that, driven by hormones.

He let out a sigh of relief when he pulled into his neighborhood, the sound cut off abruptly as he saw the three faintly glowing figures standing out in the yard waiting for him. Yami blinked, hoping that they would just disappear only to have them still out there. He grumbled to himself, letting out a low curse as he pulled into his driveway and turned off the car, stepping out of the vehicle before slamming the door shut with more force that was necessary. He stayed staring at the car, realizing that he was acting like a petulant child, but he couldn't help it. He just wanted one night without ghosts.

Yami took a deep breath before turning around, glaring at the three ghosts on his lawn. "We're not talking out here. Come on."

"Well, we're not going inside." Yami froze at that, turning to look at the ghost that had spoken up. Tomoya Hanasaki shrunk back into his jacket, clutching the front of it close to him. The ghost of the high school student shook his head. "We're not. Not while he's here."

"He? You mean Yugi?" Yami looked up to the guest bedroom window, tipping his head to the side. "What's the matter with Yugi?"

"What do you mean 'what's the matter with Yugi'?" Duke Devlin folded his arms, the tassels on his black jacket shaking with the motion. Yami supposed Duke was trying to intimidate him with that glare, but decided to ignore it altogether; shrugging and turning around to walk back to his house. It was late already, probably closer to tomorrow than today and, another funeral or not, he had to be back at work tomorrow. "Hey, don't leave while I'm talking to you!"

Yami turned around quickly, glaring at the three. "Well then, what do you want me to do? If we can't talk rationally inside then why should I talk to you out here?"

"Don't get mad at them. They're just worried."

"Solomon…" The old man raised an eyebrow, absently flipping a coin through his fingers. Yami let out the rest of his breath in one long sigh, turning to unlock the house before walking in, heading for the kitchen. If they wanted to talk, they could do it in here, away from the neighbors who thought that he was crazy. He got enough trouble from the police; he didn't want it from the people he lived around.

As he thought, the three ghosts trailed in, Duke and Tomoya waiting for Solomon to take his seat before they went for their own, Tomoya perching nervously on the counter while Duke spun a chair around and straddled it, resting his arms on the table and looking expectantly at Yami. Yami returned the look before focusing his attention on the table in front of him, shaking his head slowly.

He jumped when Solomon rested a hand on his shoulder, the old miner smiling kindly at him. "Where did you go?"

"I left a note."

"Yeah, but we couldn't come in because of the-" Duke cut himself off as Solomon shot him a glare, Yami glancing over at Tomoya to gauge the other's reaction, not surprised to find Tomoya glaring at the ground.

Yami slumped in his chair, running a hand through his hair. "Look, Serenity called me and asked me to get a ghost out of her house, so I went over to talk to it. Turns out, it just gave me a lot of crap before skipping off."

"What did it tell you?"

He was aware of all of the ghosts leaning forward at that. Yami fiddled with the end off his shirt before sighing. "It said that I could have stopped all of this."

"Fuck." Yami looked up at Duke in surprise, watching as the young man got up and paced along one wall of the kitchen. "I mean, really? What did that ghost look like? I will find him and-"

"Duke!"

"It doesn't matter Solomon, he's gone back to the graveyard. Turns out he only wanted to tell me this stuff before going back." Yami gave a shaky sigh. "Apparently they're really scared of whatever this is too, they're taking steps to keep themselves safe at the graveyard."

"Valon probably." Tomoya muttered to himself, looking shocked at the stared directed at him. "What? He's probably the toughest guy around that place. You're going to have trouble getting in there now, Yami. You reek of reaper."

"Back to the topic." Solomon raised an eyebrow before leaning forward, resting his hand on Yami's shoulder again. "You listen to me; there is no way that you could have stopped all of this, any of this. You don't know what's going on any more than we do. We're just scared."

"I didn't have to take Holloway that night." He winced as he was hit on the back of the head, rubbing the sore spot and staring at Solomon.

The old miner was leaning over the table, pointing a finger at him and looking furious. "Listen here, young man, you were trying to do the right thing. That crash was completely out of your control." Yami flinched and rolled his shoulders forward, staring at the table as Solomon continued to speak. "You were trying to save her life."

"I ended up killing her, Solomon!" Yami stood up, hearing his chair clatter against the floor as it fell. He grabbed the edge of the table to keep her from falling over, trembling as he spoke. "I killed her, Solomon. I killed Tèa, and I loved her!"

Yami panted for breath as he stared at the ghosts who had all backed away from where he stood, ducking his head and letting go of the table. He turned around and set the chair back up, walking away. The ghosts gave way as he walked, letting him pass.

It was Tomoya's voice that stopped him, Yami grabbing onto the doorframe to keep himself upright, turning around to look over his shoulder at the high schooler. "What about the reaper, Yami?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"NO!"

Yami tensed at the shout, turning around to stare at the hallway before the voice registered in his mind. "Yugi!"

Ignoring the shouts from the other ghosts, he pushed away from the door, racing for the guest bedroom. He bounded up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Yami grabbed the banister at the top of the stairs, using that to change directions quickly before continuing to sprint towards Yugi's room, running as fast as he could.

Without pausing to wonder why he felt the need to get to Yugi, Yami opened the door, lingering at the doorway long enough to see Yugi thrashing around on the bed before rushing over and grabbing onto his shoulders. "Yugi, wake up. It's just a dream, Yugi, wake up!"

* * *

_He was in the catacombs again, he knew it from the smell and the dim lighting. Not that it bothered him. But he could feel Mana holding on to the back of his jacket, clinging to it for her life. He reached back with one hand to pat her arm, offering her that little comfort before continuing to move on. There was someone down here that he needed to take care of and, by now; he knew that no amount of arguing would get Mana back up to safety. She wanted to be close to him, said she felt safer there._

_Yugi slowed again, looking around to try and spot the rogue reaper, his hand clenching the handle of his scythe more tightly. Dartz could be down here anywhere, hiding behind any corner or crouching over a dead body. A reaper didn't have the same sensibilities that humans did and dead bodies, completely rotted or not, were a normal thing for them to see. Yugi narrowed his eyes, thinking he saw a flicker of movement ahead of them. But, then again, that could have just been the torches that were down here._

_He sighed; turning around to look at Mana to make sure she was doing alright, the fumes from the rotting bodies could be deadly to her. They would both leave if she became overwhelmed. Yugi was not going to risk losing his balance after spending so long trying to find her. He ways about to ask her how she was doing when he saw Mana's eyes widen in fear. Then he felt something grab the back of his jacket, pulling him away from her. Yugi's head was forced backwards, the reaper trying to pull away so he could knock his attacker away, freezing at the insane smile and the green and yellow eyes that looked down at him._

_Dartz laughed before flinging Yugi back. Yugi grunted as he hit the floor, his scythe tumbling out of his grip and smacking against the stone. He groaned and tried to get back up to his feet, reaching for his weapon as Dartz advanced on Mana. "You've got a pretty little girlfriend here."_

_"Get away from her!"_

_"Is she the one Yugi? Is she your balance?"_

_There was the click of a gun, Mana shaking as she held the revolver up to Dartz's chest. "Don't come any closer."_

_"You've got yourself a spitfire, Yugi." Dartz took a step closer, the gun pressing against his clothes. "Go on and shoot. I'm sure you know what will happen. Absolutely nothing. You can't kill what's already dead!"_

_"Shoot him, Mana!" Yugi grabbed his scythe, walking towards Dartz. While the bullet wouldn't kill the reaper, it would hurt and it would distract him long enough for Yugi to use his scythe, the only thing that would kill him. "Just do it."_

_"Yugi…he said it wouldn't-"_

_"Just do it!" He saw Dartz's hand move, pulling something out of his pocket even as he ran towards her. If Dartz got his scythe out, then he could kill him or Mana before Yugi could even move. Yugi's eyes widened as he saw Dartz twist the small stick, watching as it expanded before Dartz tapped the end on the floor, the blade sliding out. "Run, Mana!"_

_She took off, the gun slipped back into its holster. Dartz made to lunge after her, Yugi taking advantage of his momentary confusion to swing his scythe, hoping to kill the rogue reaper cleanly. Instead, Dartz ducked to the side, Yugi turning to follow him only to get his arm caught and forced back, the scythe clattering to the ground. The sound drew Mana's attention, the girl stopping. Yugi was about to shout for her to keep running when he felt the cold mental of Dartz's blade against his neck._

_"Now, here's the deal, girly. You have two choices, you can be smart and run out of here or you can shoot yourself with that gun you have." Yugi saw Mana's eyes widen at that, taking a step backward. He flinched as Dartz pressed the blade against his neck, gasping as he felt it nick his skin. "But, if you run, he dies."_

_Mana stopped, looking between the revolver in its holster and Yugi. Yugi shook his head, glancing over to where his scythe was. It was his only chance of killing Dartz, but it was too far away and, unless he got Dartz's scythe away from him, which probably wasn't going to happen. The blade twitched against his neck again. "Make up your mind then, he's got a few seconds left."_

_Yugi bit his lip before slamming his head backward into Dartz's. The rogue reaper stumbled back, holding onto his forehead. Yugi leapt away, screaming in pain as the scythe caught his side, hitting the stone floor and rolling, one hand rising to press against the wound. He gritted his teeth, glancing over his shoulder at Mana before turning and dragging himself over to his scythe, grabbing the wooden handle and rolling over onto his back, quickly raising the handle to block Dartz's attack on him._

_He strained against the taller reaper, kicking one foot up into Dartz's stomach. The reaper gasped, Yugi using the moment to wiggle out from under him, turning to stand in front of Mana, favoring his injured side. He spared a quick glance to his side, cursing when he saw that it was bleeding steadily. It wasn't deep enough to be fatal, but it would slow him down badly. Yugi looked back up in time to block another attack by Dartz, both he and Mana backing up towards the exit to the catacombs. While it annoyed him that he would be losing Dartz again, he wanted to be sure that Mana was safe._

_Dartz pivoted to his bad side, Yugi a second too slow. His blade caught the edge of Dartz's clothes, cutting through fabric and no skin. He finished the turn as Dartz grabbed a hold of Mana, the reaper giving him an insane smile before roughly throwing her towards the nearest wall. Yugi jumped forward, eyes wide as he watched her slam into the wall. "Mana!"_

_The he heard the horrible sound of flesh parting, staring at Mana as he realized that she had been thrown onto something as well. He took a shaky step forward, staring at the rough spar of stone that was sticking out through her stomach. Yugi found that he couldn't stop staring at it, finally forcing himself to look away, staring right into Mana's eyes as she gasped for breath, stumbling forward another step. And then, she was gone, her head lolling to one side._

_Yugi shook his head, staring at the body of his balance. "NO! No, Mana, no!"_

"Yugi!" Something was shaking him, Yugi immediately staring up, automatically reaching for his scythe before realizing that it was only Yami. He frowned at that thought, trying to sort out what had happened before slumping.

He had dreamed about it, the nightmare assignment of hunting Dartz down, the same assignment that had lost him one of his best friends. While Mana hadn't been his balance, she had meant the world to him and he thought that he had gotten over her death. It had been decades ago. He leaned forward, drawing his knees up and resting his forehead on them as he gasped for breath.

Yugi turned his head to the side as he felt the bed sag on one side, surprised that Yami was still there, his host looking worriedly at him. He gave Yami a weak smile to show that he was alright before taking a deep breath as sitting back, trying to get himself to relax again. His body was still hyped up on an adrenaline rush from the memory, Yugi tipped his head back to look at the ceiling as he took calming breaths.

"You alright?" Yugi tipped his head to the side, staring at Yami before giving a shrug. Yami seemed to understand that, nodding and giving a harsh laugh. "Yeah, thought so. Alright enough to go on."

"Yeah."

Silence fell between them, Yugi surprised at how comfortable it felt. He used the moment to look at Yami, aware that his host was pretending that he didn't feel Yugi's stare. There was something about this human, something beyond the comfortable feeling that Yugi felt around him, something about Yami himself that he could identify with. Yugi shook his head and went back to staring at the wall. It was probably just because Yami wasn't trying to figure out what had scared Yugi so badly, he was just letting Yugi sit with it; unlike Ryou and Sugoroku. Both of them meant well, but it was bad enough that he had to relive those moments in his dreams. He would prefer to gather himself together and forget about those times again.

He finally turned to look at Yami. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." His host gave a partial smile. "I wish I had someone to wake me out of my nightmares."

"It helps doesn't it?" Yugi nodded in agreement, jumping when he felt something under his hand. He looked down, shocked to see that he had moved his hand to cover Yami's. He looked up again, both him and his host shocked by the action and yet, neither of them were moving to correct themselves. Yugi swallowed and leaned back, hoping that Yami wouldn't take the chance to lean forward and kiss him. He knew that it was a stupid impulse, but with the way that he felt like he was pulled towards Yami, he was halfway expecting all of the things he had seen in the stupid romance movies.

He swallowed nervously, halfway tempted to lean back some more when Yami swayed forward, the man taking the moment to move his hand out from under Yugi's and stand up, looking a bit unsteady. Yugi watched him stumble over to the door, standing there for a moment before looking back. "Night Yugi."

Yugi nodded in response, watching as Yami turned to look back into the hall before sighing and walking out of the room, shutting the door behind him. He swallowed, untangling the blankets from his legs and walking over to the door, opening it a crack and looking out. He easily spotted Yami leaning on the banister that ran along the landing, Yami staring at the wall, obviously not seeing it. Yugi ducked his head, tempted to just shut the door and leave Yami alone, but something encouraged him to walk out and stand beside Yami, his host not looking his way for a long while.

Yami sighed before turning to look at Yugi, staring at him for a while before shaking his head. "It never goes away does it?"

He thought back over the decades, remembering how he still missed Mana's presence badly. And, even further back, his family, the one who had buried him under a pile of stones with everything they thought he would need for the afterlife that he had never gone to. He still missed them, although the ache had eased when he had adopted the first Mutou in an attempt to have something to help him forget Mana, to fill his life with something so he wouldn't have to listen to the silence.

It's why he supposed that the reapers had to have balances, to have someone there all the time so they wouldn't have to go back to their homes and just listen to the silence around them. It was dangerous close to insanity, remembering all of those that you had lost and knowing that you would be living for a long time yet.

Yugi ran a hand through his bangs, holding them out of his face for a moment before letting them flop back down. "I'm still waiting for time to heal all. It seems to work on its own schedule."

Yami nodded, Yugi turning to look at his host, worried by the way Yami's shoulders were twitching, like he was trying to keep himself from crying. He bit his lip, looking away for a moment before reaching out to touch Yami's shoulder. He jumped as Yami turned and suddenly pulled him into a hug, clinging to him like Yugi was the only thing keeping him afloat.

He tried not to tense in the embrace, staring at the wall. Yugi hesitated a moment before reaching out and wrapping his arms around Yami as well, holding him close. He felt Yami tense for a moment before relaxing, the other man catching himself before his weight dragged Yugi down. Yugi sighed and shifted so his chin was resting on Yami's shoulder. "Come on you."

"What?" Yami pulled away, only then seeming to realize the position they were in. He blushed and tried to pull away, Yugi getting a firm hold of his hand. "Sorry. I didn't-"

"Don't care. How long has it been since you've had contact with anyone?"

Yami blinked. "Today."

"No, contact like this." Yugi pulled him back into a hug, Yami almost immediately relaxing again. He pulled away a bit, reluctant to release Yami entirely.

"Uh," Yami looked around, "a long time."

"Well you need it then." Yugi pulled at his hand, Yami still refusing to move. He chuckled and looked over his shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm not going to take advantage of you."

"But-"

"Listen, you need this. You can't go through your life without letting your guard down, you're going to become exhausted and twitchy." Yami flinched at that, Yugi offering a lopsided smile. "See, you're already halfway there."

"But why you?"

Yugi shrugged. "Isn't it always easier with a stranger?"

Yami didn't answer but allowed himself to be pulled into the guest bedroom, Yugi letting go of him long enough to flip the covers down before pushing Yami towards the bed. He clambered in on the other side, slipping under the covers before pulling Yami close to him. For a moment, the human resisted before relaxing, Yugi smiling at that before getting comfortable.

He didn't quite know why he was doing this. He could blame it on the strange pull he felt towards Yami. Or he could blame it on his own experience; it was nice to have someone hold you when you were standing on the edge. Either way, it felt strangely good to be holding another person, Yugi smiling to himself as he shifted slightly, not even caring that it brought him into close contact with Yami, already falling back asleep.


	6. He That Lives to Forever

** Chapter Five: He That Lives to Forever **

Yugi woke up slowly, tempted to fall back asleep and curl up again with the warm thing that rested against him, but his stomach reminded him that he had skipped dinner the day before, rumbling angrily. He squeezed his eyes shut, hoping that he could stay asleep a while longer before giving up and stretching, rubbing his cheek against the warm body in front of him before sitting up, running a hand through his hair. Yugi smothered a yawn, turning to one side only to meet Yami's wide eyed gaze.

The two stared at each other for a moment before rushing to get off the bed, Yugi rubbing the back of his neck nervously as Yami walked back to the door, his host hesitating before giving Yugi a nod. "Thanks for…you know…last night."

"Yeah…yeah. Welcome."

"I-" Yami cut himself off with a blush. "I'll get breakfast ready."

Yugi nodded, staring at the floor until he heard the door slam shut. He chose that moment to throw himself across the bed, trying to subdue the need to beat his head against something. What had seemed like a good idea last night was looking awfully stupid in the light of day. What had gotten into him, dragging Yami into bed with him? It didn't matter how much he needed it, they had only known each other for a few hours and he was already dragging the poor man into bed with him.

He rolled onto his back with a groan, flinging his arm over his fact and letting himself dangle over the bed. There had to be some way for him to figure this out, beyond wracking his brain for answers, because he wasn't getting anything. All that he was getting from his body was how much closer he wanted to get to Yami again, just to hold him because the human needed it. And making Yami happy made him happy. Yugi smiled at that before shaking his head, rolling onto his stomach and reaching for his phone.

A quick glance at the clock and an equally as quick calculation assured him that a quick call to Ryou wouldn't be too rude. He would always call Seto later and report all of this. Yugi made a mental note to call Seto while he was walking back into town before scrolling through his contacts and finding Ryou. He took a deep breath before pressing the call button, resting the phone against his ear before taking a deep breath.

It ran twice before Ryou picked up, Yugi breathing a sigh of relief. If Bakura had been on the line, it would have been embarrassing. "Hey."

"Yugi? Hey! How's it going?"

"Oh, horrible." Yugi rubbed a hand over his face, shifting up so he was sitting up with his back to the wall. "Apparently these guys have been keeping at lot from us, because they were embarrassed or something. I don't know, but there's something going on here."

"Doesn't sound like much of a vacation."

"It won't be. I know that already." Yugi gave a shuddering sigh. "There's so much stuff going on here and I haven't even scrapped the surface. But there's something going on."

"I thought that was why you were there?"

"Beyond that, Ryou. There's someone here, someone that's able to control my moods."

There was a short pause. "Like a telepath?"

"No. Nothing like that." Yugi shook his head before letting his head loll back. "It's something else. I mean, I nearly got run over by this guy and I forgave him right off the bat!"

Ryou was silent for a moment, Yugi listening to the common sounds of a household, relaxing at that. "Did you feel calm and safe around him?"

"Yes! Exactly! He's manipulating me!"

"Yugi, you're supposed to feel that way."

"What?"

"Listen Yugi, it's natural. It's the sign that all of us reapers wait for. You've finally found your balance."

Yugi stared at the wall, his mouth dropping open in shock. "Shit."

"That's not the usual response."

"I know but," Yugi got up and began to pace, "this isn't the time and place for that. Ryou there's…there's…" Yugi rubbed his hand over his face before letting his breath out in a long sigh. "Ryou, there was another reaper here five years ago when this stuff started happening. He brought his balance with him."

"I don't see pro-"

"She was killed, Ryou." Yugi swallowed harshly, hearing Ryou gasp. "There's something here that can kill our balances and make it look like a heart attack. If there's something like that here, then I don't want my balance here. And then what's with this sudden attraction thing?"

"Well, you're supposed to…" He heard Ryou clear his throat, already imagining the blush on Ryou's face as he said that. "Anyway, it's kind of natural. And it might be stronger for you since you've been without a balance for so long."

"But I had thought that Mana-"

"The way that Seto explained it to me is that balances are people that…resonate at the same frequencies as each other. You and Mana were close, but not a match. You could have lived happily with her, but the rule wouldn't apply. Sorry Yugi."

"Ryou, I don't even know him."

"But you can't stay away can you?" Yugi's silence answered for him, Ryou laughing on his end of the line. "I didn't know Bakura either when I first met him, but I stuck by him. Stick by this guy, take it slow if you want, but just stick close to him. See how it turns out."

"Ryou…"

"Yugi, you don't want to be alone forever, do you? Do you really want to wake up one morning and realize that the only thing you have in the world is yourself?"

"No."

"Then trust me on this. And call Seto later, he'll want to know about all of this."

"Yeah." Yugi flopped back onto the bed. "Thanks Ryou."

"Welcome."

He hung up, staring at the phone before sliding it into his pocket. He would just have to deal with being in these clothes again today and grab clean clothes from his suitcases when he went back to the bed and breakfast. Yugi shifted so his legs were hanging over the side of the bed, rubbing his hands over his face as he tried to come to terms with this new discovery.

It was incredibly likely that Ryou knew what he was talking about and, in the worst case scenario, he could always ask Seto. But Yugi was more than willing to admit that Yami was his balance, he enjoyed the feeling of being in control of himself. He had spent too long alone and he hadn't realized how much he had felt off balance before now. Yugi smiled to himself at that, standing up and shaking his head, of course his luck would give him his balance now, when he could lose him.

The thought made him tense, Yugi wrapping his arms around himself and shivering. Mana hadn't even been his balance and he had nearly lost himself after her death. It was only because Ryou and Bakura had been nearby that they had kept him from trying to follow after her into the afterlife or becoming like Dartz. And then it had taken him years to even dare to venture out aside from his reaper duties. Here he was completely alone; Alister and Raphael too far away to reach if something went wrong. He would go insane this time if anything happened to Yami.

Yugi bit his lip, shivering before walking out of the room and down the stairs, following the smell of breakfast cooking to find the kitchen. He found Yami leaning back against the counter, watching the eggs that were in the frying pan. His host twisted slightly, smiling when he saw him. Yugi returned the smile, hesitating for a moment before walking around the counter and wrapping his arms around Yami. The other man seemed surprised for a moment, Yugi feeling him tense before he relaxed. "This is becoming a habit with you."

"Do you mind?"

Yami didn't answer for a long time, Yugi tempted to step out of the embrace, but the steady pressure of Yami's arms against his back prevented him from moving. "Not really."

"Good. Because we might be doing this often."

"Sounds nice."

Yugi opened his eyes, suddenly aware that he had closed them. "But we've only known each other for a few hours."

"Conscious for a few hours. Unconscious for about eight. It should count."

Yugi nodded, the motion rubbing his cheek against Yami's chest. He blushed at the fact that he was being so forward with a stranger, about to pull away when he felt Yami shiver, his host's body twitching oddly in his arms. Yugi stood up straight, intending to see what was going on when a hand closed around his throat, forcing him backwards against the wall as the rest of the ghost finished passing through Yami. Yugi's first instinct was to check on Yami, tilting his head to one side to see his balance leaning against the counter with a look of shock on his face before he focused on the thing holding him.

The first thing he saw were angry green eyes, Yugi rocking his head back to see what else he could of the ghost, taking in black hair that was tied up into a ponytail and held back from the ghost's face by a red bandanna before the ghost closed his hand more firmly around his neck. "You're not welcome here."

"Duke!" The ghost was pulled back, Yami stepping between Yugi and the ghost.

Duke glared at Yami before retreating. Yugi's hand strayed toward his pocket, running his fingers over the scythe that was there as he looked at the ghost. It seemed like Duke understood the unspoken threat, snorting and storming over towards the kitchen table. Yugi turned his head, freezing when he realized that there were two more ghosts sitting at the table. He looked back at Yami before sidling behind the counter, feeling a bit safer with something between him and the other ghosts.

Yami shot him a confused look before walking towards the ghosts, giving them all an even glare. "What was that about?"

"We tried to tell you last night. You let a reaper into this house." Duke crossed his arms over his chest, shooting a level glare at Yugi. "Before you ran off, we were going to tell you what he would do to us if he found out that you kept us here. And then, I find you cuddling it."

"What are you talking about?"

"I think that it would be smarter to ask me what I intend to do rather than jumping to conclusions." Yugi leaned forward onto the counter, making sure that both his hands were visible. He gave Yami a little smile before turning his attention to the three ghosts. He raised an eyebrow at the sight of them, not sure how Yami had ended up hosting a hippie, a high schooler and an old miner. He tapped his fingers against the counter before standing up straight. "And why would I want to do anything to you?"

"You're a reaper." Duke was the first to answer, Yugi looking over the other two. The high schooler looked like he was too scared to talk and the old miner seemed to want to stay out of this. Yugi turned back to Duke as the ghost stepped forward, careful not to walk past where Yami was standing. "You guys are programmed to send all souls to the afterlife no matter what."

"Yugi?" He looked over at Yami at the soft question. Yugi sighed and stood up straight, rubbing his eyes before shaking his head.

"Alright. God, I'm not awake enough for this." Yugi walked around the counter, leaning against it on the other side. He smiled as Yami came to stand beside him, shifting so he was leaning against the human, making sure to watch all of the ghosts. "Keep that food from burning and you'll get the full story."

For a moment, it looked like Yami would refuse and just walk away. Yugi's heart beat faster at the thought, not ready for this thing to fall apart just yet. He breathed a sigh of relief when Yami nodded and turned back to the stove. Yugi tipped his head to keep an eye on his balance. Of all days, why did this have to happen on his second day in Fairwater, when he was confused about what Yami really was to him. And, above all, he felt gross from having worn his clothes for a day and then slept in them. He rubbed his hand over his face, wishing that he could just put this off for another few days so he could gather himself for this moment; but with those ghosts, he wasn't going to get that chance.

"Yes, I'm a reaper. Yes, I take souls to the afterlife. No, I'm not interested in you or any other ghost in this town. Happy?"

"Then what are you here for?" The high schooler leaned forward, glancing over at Duke before staring at Yugi again. "I mean, why would you come here specifically?"

"We're worried about whatever is killing these humans, because they're completely random to us."

"You mean you don't know?" The old miner paled at that, leaning back in his chair. "If the reapers don't know when and why this is happening, then this thing is more trouble than we thought."

Yugi nodded in agreement, glancing back at Yami before ducking his head. "Apparently it can kill balances too. That's what happened to the last reaper that was here."

All the ghosts started at that, staring at him with looks of fear. Yugi shifted in place, turning his head as Yami came around the counter, handing him his plate before going to sit at the table, the high schooler getting up so Yami could sit down. Yugi hesitated a moment before following Yami to the table, sitting down at the other empty seat, suddenly aware that Duke was hovering behind him. He shivered and glanced up at Yami, watching the human as he poked at the eggs on his plate. Yami looked up a moment later, leaning forward to stare at him. "Care to explain this to a human who is lost?"

"A reaper is…" Yugi closed his eyes, trying to simplify the explanation as much as he could. "We're basically souls that are picked out at random for a particular job."

"Taking souls?"

"Yes and no. We do help people do to the afterlife, but only those whose souls will get stuck in their bodies." At the slight shake of Yami's head Yugi tapped his fork against his plate. "Naturally, when the body dies, the soul goes free and then they have a choice, they can remain behind or take the path into the afterlife. Now, if they stay behind they can either go to the afterlife a year later, remain on Earth or wait for a reaper with a God complex to come and force them into the afterlife. But when people are murdered or die in an accident they don't usually get that chance to realize that they are dead, so their soul is kind of stuck. That's where we come in, we go find the people whose souls are stuck and help them out."

"And then you hunt down the murder?"

Yugi's hand tightened on his fork. "We're not allowed to mess with the natural order. The murder will be tried by humans."

Yami stared at him before nodding, taking a bite of his scrambled eggs before sitting back. "So, you're one of them."

"Yeah."

"But you feel alive." Yugi caught the disappointed look in Yami's eyes, not sure how to take it.

He cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. "Think of this as an exoskeleton. We're officially dead souls, but we need a more stable existence, we can't rely on high emotions and our bodies existing to keep us around, so we get an almost mortal appearance. So we have to eat, sleep, drink…the whole deal. But we can't die, unless we chose to follow a soul down the path or another reaper kills us."

Yami stared at him for a moment before humming in response, ducking his head and going back to his breakfast. Yugi stared at the man for a moment more before following his example. Suddenly, it was more awkward then before he had explained everything, blushing and ducking his head at the looks that Yami sent his way. Trying to not stare at Yami, he found himself looking around at the ghosts, receiving glares from two of them for his trouble. Yugi turned away quickly, rolling his shoulders forward to make himself look smaller and less threatening.

He was relieved when Yami finished, following the man to the sink to drop his plate off before rushing up to the guest room to gather his backpack. Yugi rushed out of the door and over to the car, breathing a sigh of relief when he was the first one out, taking the short time to try and gather himself back together. Maybe it would have been better to not have found out that Yami was his balance, then he would have been able to control himself, especially in the light of what Ryou said. But he didn't want to rush this, too afraid that it would be another false alarm, like Mana. And, like Mana, he didn't want this to end in tragedy.

Besides, Yami had mentioned that he had been married before, which meant that the man probably wasn't interested in him in that way. Yugi blushed at the prick of disappointment that he felt, wanting to laugh at himself. It wasn't like he was desperate in any way, but he wasn't going to lie to himself, Yami was good looking. He wasn't too tall that he towered over Yugi, but he was tall enough to make Yugi safe. Yugi could just duck his head and then he could feel like he was being held tightly and protected, a nice feeling after being on his own for so long. But he would be fine with a simple friendship between them, anything was better than the usual sense of loneliness that hovered over him.

He perked up as Yami walked out of his house, watching as his host paused upon seeing him, the happy feeling that had been building up disappearing suddenly. Yami stared at him for a moment before turning and locking his house, Yugi's stomach churning as Yami turned and walked to the car.

As soon as the vehicle was unlocked, Yugi dove inside, quickly buckling himself in and staring straight ahead as Yami slid in, staring up the car. The uncomfortable silence lasted until Yami had driven out of the neighborhood, then Yugi heard him sigh. Yugi glanced over, swallowing nervously when he saw Yami's hand tighten on the steering wheel, sure that it was a sign that the questioning would begin. He kept forgetting that he wasn't human, that he took things in stride much more readily than the other humans did, it was a side affect of having lived so long, he had seen just about everything.

"So…"

"It's all true."

Yami glanced over at him in surprise before laughing. "No, no. I believe you. I've seen a lot of weird stuff in my life. Hell, I talk to ghosts on a daily basis. I've just never...there's never been anyone else that can see them. I thought it was something to do with me."

"There's some people that can." Yugi picked out his words carefully, trying to gauge Yami's reaction as he spoke. "There's varying degrees but it's not rare. People just don't like to talk about it."

"I know about that." The corner of Yami's mouth twitched slightly, some of the tension in his shoulders coming back. His hands tightened on the steering wheel. "But knowing all of that, it's not weird hearing about reapers and all of that. _I_ barely know what I'm doing with what I can do. But...about something else you said."

Yugi flinched, turning to look out the window so he couldn't see Yami's expression. "What?"

"You said something about killing balances and I'm guessing from the reactions of the others that balances are important. But what are they?"

"Balances?" Yugi let his forehead knock against the glass, watching the trees and houses go by as he spoke carefully. "They're there to keep us sane. We're all alone in the world, watching all of our friends die of old age, so we need someone there that will be there for all time, someone who isn't a reaper. Someone to just be there to drive away the silence."

He shut his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. "According to some of the others I work with, it's like your souls resonate at the same frequency, as crazy at it sounds. You feel happy and safe around them."

"Like I do around you?" Yugi turned to look at Yami, noticing that the human was shooting him glances out of the corner of his eye. Yugi debated lying to Yami before nodding slowly. He was surprised at the smile that crossed Yami's face, the man giving a long sigh. "That's…that's good."

"Yeah." For a moment, Yugi debated telling Yami about the perks of being a balance, like the fact that he would live to a good old age, but decided not to. With whatever that thing was here, he didn't want to lose Yami just because the human thought he was invincible. He swallowed harshly and reached out to touch Yami's shoulder. "Let's just take it slow, alright? We're both still recovering from losing someone important."

Yami nodded, taking one hand off the steering wheel to catching Yugi's hand in his own, entwining their fingers. "Whatever you say, Yugi."

He blushed at the simple contact, pushing the thoughts that questioned Yami's bold moves out of his mind and just enjoying the contact. This was almost as good as he had felt around Mana. He gave a silent apology to her before tightening his hold on Yami's hand. She had been one of his best friends and the one he would have gladly settled down with even if he knew that he would have met Yami later. But, some part of him knew that she wouldn't have minded this, anything to get him out of his funk.

They held hands all the way into the town, Yugi the first one to let go with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I want to see if they are done with my clothes yet."

"Sure, I'll park at the library and you can run down there." Yami hesitated for a moment before giving Yugi a smile. "Have lunch with me?"

"Sure."

Yami pulled the car through the alley and into the parking lot of the library, Yugi out before he had even cut out the engine. He gave Yami a wave before slinging his backpack over his shoulder, breaking into a jog.

The bed and breakfast was still cordoned off, Yugi slipping around the side until he came upon a police officer guarding an open end of the tape. After giving his name and having it checked off the guest list, Yugi walked in, surprised to see Joey leaning against the front desk. The blond officer gave him a smile and a wave before gesturing over to the pile of luggage to one side of the room. "Sorry about the hassle, but you're clear to go."

"Just like that?"

"Well, I could ask you the question of where you were yesterday afternoon." Joey sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Since you obviously didn't check into your rooms by Mrs. Kato's records. So, where were you?"

"Library. You can even check with Yami on that." Yugi gave Joey a smile. "Thanks for looking after this."

Joey waved him along, Yugi pulling his suitcases towards the closest bathroom. He could hold off on the shower for a bit, sure that he would be able to get one at Yami's house when they returned for the night, but he did want to change into clean clothes. Yugi dug through the stuff that he had brought with him before pulling out a pair of jeans and a black long sleeved shirt, smirking to himself before rushing into the bathroom.

* * *

Yami shook his head as he watched Yugi run off, stretching out his back before walking around to the front of the library with a smile on his face. He hadn't had that good of a night's sleep for a long while. Of course, he might have just been lucky that no one had been calling him about ghosts or the ghosts hadn't taken it upon themselves to seek him out. But it had felt nice to have someone holding him through the night, especially since it had been an attractive man.

He blushed at the thought, quickly unlocking the doors to the library. It had been a while since he had actually allowed himself to think like that, to actually look for someone else instead of avoiding all contact with other people. He hadn't been too keen on someone finding out that he could talk to ghosts while he was dating them, it was a story that he'd rather not repeat. But he had never expected the one that he would be interested in to take his oddity in stride.

Then again, Yugi was an oddity himself.

Yami sighed, glancing down at the step to the library to pick up the papers that had been dropped by, carrying them to the desk before cutting off the wrappings, about to set them into their usual place when he noticed the headline, freezing in place.

Local Con-Man Stalks Cemetery  
Promises of Messages from Beyond the Grave are Not to Be Believed

He stared at a picture of himself underneath the front page headline, barely aware that he was twitching. It was from the Warrington funeral, of him leaning over to talk to Mrs. Warrington. He hadn't even noticed the reporters were there. Yami cursed and tossed the papers down into their usual place before checking the time. No one would come in for another hour or so, and the newspaper office was just down the block. This was something he was not going to let go unchallenged.

Yami walked out of the library, nearly slamming the door behind him as he stormed down the sidewalk, pausing long enough to glance around the corner before crossing the street, his hands clenched into fists, glaring at his destination. Why would they write that about him, especially without asking for his own take on it? And a front page article? Was this whole town trying to drive him out? He had done nothing at all.

He barely kept himself from slamming open the door to the newspaper office, but all of the reporters still turned to look at him. Yami barely gave them a glance before looking up towards where the editor-in-chief was, grimacing at Rebecca Hawkins superior smirk. She turned back to the woman she was talking to, finishing up the conversation before looking back at Yami and motioning him forward. "I was wondering when I would see you."

He managed to hold his tongue until they were in her office, watching as Rebecca shut the door before turning on her. "What the hell are you trying to do to me, Rebecca?"

She stared at him for a moment before walking over to her desk and sitting behind it. Once there, she leaned forward, carefully taking off her glasses and staring at him. "I'm trying to give these people the truth, as they deserve it."

"The truth or slander that sells?"

Rebecca smiled and gave a little shrug before sitting back, playing absently with her glasses. "I must admit, I was hoping for a different angle for this article, but I found that this was too juicy."

"None of it is true, Rebecca."

"Is it?" She smirked, nodding to herself. "You see, Charles did his research. You've been at every funeral since this…'epidemic' started. And, at every funeral, you have words that you claim come from their departed loved ones."

"I'm just trying to help them out." Yami leaned forward, bracing himself on the back of a chair instead of sitting down in it. "I know how it feels to be left without a single word and to be kept waiting for that. I'd rather have them avoid that feeling."

Rebecca stopped fiddling with her glasses. "So you lie?"

Yami stared at her for a second too long before shaking his head. "No!"

"Or so you claim." She sat back again, smug and secure in her position. "Personally I think it's a bit odd. I mean, you, the one who killed your own wife, offering comfort to those who have lost someone they've loved. Is your conscience suddenly coming back?"

Yami went stiff at that, staring at her before shaking his head. "I didn't kill her."

"Come on, Yami, no one believes that. I mean," she jerked her head towards the window behind her, "everyone here knows you're gay and yet you married Tèa. And you managed to stay married for a good two years without arguments until that one night." Rebecca shivered. "Now that would be a story. What were you doing on Holloway that night, Yami?"

He stared at her with his mouth open, trying to form words. It only took a few moments of failure before he snapped his mouth shut, pushing away from the chair. "I didn't murder her."

"I'll believe that when it snows in July." Rebecca gave him a wink before sitting back in her chair. "I'll see you around, Yami."

His first instinct was to lunge across the desk and strangle the blonde but he reined himself in. That wouldn't prove his point and there would always be people who thought he had killed Tèa. He took a deep breath and stepped away from Rebecca's desk, walking over to her office door and opening it.

"Yami," he froze at the sound of her voice, looking over his shoulder at her. Rebecca gave him another kind smile. "Your innocent act isn't fooling anyone. We can see right though you."

He flinched at that, automatically rolling his shoulders forward and slumping. Yami let himself out of Rebecca's office and walked out of the building, ignoring the stares of the reporters. He knew that they had all heard everything, not like any of it was new. But their stares were just a little colder now, hate filled. Yami was tempted to pause at the front door to the building but forced himself outside, taking a deep breath before walking back towards the library. He would hide himself in there, like he had done since Tèa's death, and hope that no one would come looking for him. He wasn't in the mood today.

"Yami!" He looked up and flinched away at the sound of his name, belatedly recognizing that Yugi was the one calling to him. The reaper stopped, adjusting his hold on the suitcase that he was rolling along behind him and the duffel bag slung over it, freeing up one hand to rest on Yami's shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Yami relaxed in Yugi's presence, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. It was almost a shock to move from such a hostile atmosphere to Yugi's relaxing presence, but it was a relief. He jerked his head towards the library, Yugi's hand lifting from his shoulder as the reaper's face contorted in confusion, Yami about to say that he would explain inside when a black car caught his eye.

He turned to face the street, his eyes wide as he watched the hearse drive past slowly, staring at the coffin in the back before looking down the line of cars. There had already been one funeral yesterday; there couldn't already be another one today. Yami took a step closer to the street, aware that Yugi was hanging onto his arm to keep him from going too far.

A familiar face caught his eye, Yami staring at the sobbing woman in the car that was following the hearse, not able to look away from her red hair.

"Oh God." He stumbled backwards, Yugi wrapping an arm around his waist to keep him steady. "Serenity. It can't be."

"What?"

"I saw them yesterday. I saw them both yesterday and they were fine. Tristan was fine. He can't be dead." He only then realized that he was trembling, feeling Yugi wrap his arms around him to try and stop the violent motion. "But he was alive yesterday and…"

_"You could have saved them. All of them."_

The ghost's words rung in his head, Yami reaching out to cling to Yugi, trying to keep himself upright. He felt Yugi's hands moving over him, turning him around so that he was facing Yugi instead of the street, the reaper staring at him before pulling him into a hug.


	7. Dealing with Ghosts

** Chapter Six: Dealing With Ghosts **

Yami didn't know how long he clung to Yugi, pressing close to the reaper in the hopes that he would be calmed by the feeling of the other man close. But he wasn't that lucky. He was still shaking badly even when the funeral had passed them by, feeling Yugi rubbing his back and trying to comfort him. It was only then that he realized that he was speaking. "It's all my fault."

"No, it's not."

"It is. They said I could stop it."

Yami's eyes went wide as Yugi pulled him away for a moment before shaking his head, cupping Yami's cheek. "And who says that? The ghosts? They'll say anything to keep the blame off them. They said it because they want you to stop it, not because you can. Not all ghosts are manipulative but some are, and it's hard to tell which are which. But it's not your fault."

He shook his head, feeling Yugi reach up to touch the back of his neck, stopping the motion. He pulled back, Yugi smiling at him before leaning forward to rest his forehead against Yami's. "Trust me on this."

"I do." Yami sighed, feeling himself calm down as Yugi stroked the back of his neck. "I do trust you."

"Oh God." They both tensed at the voice, Yugi not letting him go even as they turned to look at who had spoken.

Yami's mouth dropped open as he found himself staring at the ghostly figure of Tristan, the man looking nervously between them and the line of slow moving cars. He was tempted to pull away from Yugi completely and speak to Tristan, but a short tug on his waist had him following Yugi towards the alley, Yami twisting back around to look at Tristan and motioning for him to follow, the ghost hesitating before obeying the command.

As soon as they were in the alley, Yami found himself pulled away by Tristan, the ghost grasping at him in his panic. "You've got to help me, Yami. They're going to burry me."

"But you're dead." Yami cursed as soon as those words left his mouth, watching as Tristan shrunk back. "Sorry, it's been a rough morning."

"Tell me about it." Tristan seemed to gain some levity for a moment before he latched back onto the situation at hand. "But they're still going to burry me. I need to be there, to make sure Serenity is alright. And I need you there! You can see me, you can talk to me! You can tell her things!"

Yami bit his lip, remembering the article from his morning, staring at the ground to one side in the dim hope that it would produce an answer only to come up short. He was about to shake his head when he felt Yugi rest a hand on his shoulder, the reaper moving forward. "I know it's a bad time, but what happened to you?"

Tristan stared at Yugi like he didn't understand the question before shrugging. "I don't know. I was getting ready to leave this morning…and Serenity had left before me because of some emergency at the hospital, but I was alone. I got out the door, saw our neighbor and then…" He looked up at the two of them, shaking in fear. "It felt like something was squeezing my heart and I couldn't breathe."

Yami turned back to look at Yugi, watching the reaper pace as he thought over the information. He paused before looking back over at Yami. "I'll stay behind and watch over the library for you. I would be persona non grata up there at the cemetery."

"I want you to come." The words tumbled out before Yami had a chance to stop them. He didn't want to leave the calm that came over him when he was around Yugi; it would just be too much for him, especially after this morning. And then he would have to face Serenity alone, something that he was not looking forward to. "They like me up there. I'll get you in."

Yugi still hesitated, swaying on the spot. Yami understood his reluctance to go up to the cemetery, especially after the way Duke had treated him this morning, but he wanted Yugi to come. The cemetery was where he lost all of his composure; he couldn't be there without ghosts entreating him to do something for them. He wanted that feeling of security that he had around Yugi, because Yugi actually understood that he wasn't crazy, that he actually saw the ghosts instead of making them up.

"Alright." Yugi reached for his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze before pulling away, already heading for the car. Yami rushed after him with Tristan trailing along.

The car ride up to the cemetery was quiet; Tristan slumped morosely in the back seat, probably trying to come to terms with the fact that he was dead. Yugi seemed to be getting more nervous the closer that they got to the cemetery, sometimes jumping at the ghosts that had come to stand at the side of the road, those ghosts probably not wanting to be bothered by the funeral. Yami took a deep steadying breath before pulling into a free parking space. He glanced back at the others before nodding, slipping from the car.

Yami paused under the sign that announced the cemetery, watching as Yugi shuffled up to him while Tristan tried to walk out of the car, failing a couple of times before he finally managed the trick, a sad smile crossing his face. "Tada!"

"Go on through, the ghosts won't bother you. I'll be right behind." Tristan nodded at the command before quickly walking past them, jumping as the ghosts poked their heads up to look at the new arrival. Yami looked over at Yugi, giving him a smile. "Ready?"

"Once more into the breech." Yugi sighed and started walking, Yami rushing to keep up with him, suddenly aware of the whispers that were following them. He glanced around, noticing that the ghosts were whispering to themselves, skirting away from where Yugi was with looks of fear on their faces. Yami scooted closer to the reaper, hovering nearby in case any of the ghosts decided to try and eliminate the threat.

His gaze jumped to where one ghost was pushing himself out of the ground, taking a quick glance at all the other ghosts before focusing his gaze on Yami, his mouth dropping open. "Well, damn. That's a sight I thought I would never see." The ghost finished pulling himself from the ground, brushing his clothes off despite the fact that there was no dirt on them before strolling over. "Excuse me, sir, but I don't like reapers on our land."

Yugi froze at that, turning to face the ghost with a smile on his face. "I'm aware of that."

"Then why did you come here?"

"I was asked. And for my own personal investigations."

Yami scooted between Yugi and the ghost, watching as the ghost's eyes narrowed. "So you're here to find new ways to send us packing into the afterlife? Well, I'll only tell you once, pal, we're not going. We happen to like it here and we'll stay that way. And, Yami, as the protector of this cemetery-"

"I'm not the protector, Valon." Yami nearly growled out the words, narrowing his eyes. "I just see ghosts, alright? That doesn't make me the protector or anything else you guys want. I draw the line at giving messages to family members."

"But you should at least know not to bring creatures like him in."

Yami tensed at that, feeling Yugi reach out for him and try to tug him along, but he brushed the reaper off, glaring at Valon. "Listen, I can't do anything but see ghosts. I don't know what you guys think I can do, but that's it. I'm just a human, Valon, not some supernatural detector."

The ghost looked away, glaring at the ground for a moment before finally giving a nod. "But the reaper still isn't welcome."

"I'm watching him and I want him here. He's trying to help." Yami grabbed Yugi's arm and towed him away, ignoring the grumbles from Valon as they left the ghost behind. He kept his tight grip on Yugi for a while, not even noticing how tightly he was holding the other until Yugi was pulling Yami's fingers from his arm.

"Easy now."

"Sorry."

Yugi waved his hand to dismiss the comment, the two of them heading over to the crowd that had gathered. "Don't worry about it. I told you that there would be trouble and there was. Can't do anything from here, but I'm here." At the confused tilt of Yami's head, Yugi just smiled. "The ghosts won't talk to me. Besides, it doesn't matter what they see, I'm just here to figure out what's causing this."

"Then what?"

"Then I'm heading back. Other reapers will take care of this, it's their jurisdiction."

"They haven't before."

Yugi nodded slowly at that, the smile on his face disappearing. "I know, but that's because…well, you're getting the young reapers here, they're all sort of scared of what they are doing. But they've got good intentions; it just might take them a while to react."

"And then how many more will die?"

"Yami, listen, I can't stay here. You can't stay here." Yami started at that, staring at Yugi as the reaper played with the hem of his shirt. "There's something wrong going on here and no one can predict it. We're all in danger, human and ghost alike. And I don't want you here for that."

"You're asking me to run away with you?"

"Until this is settled, yes." Yugi looked away from him abruptly, coming to a stop a good distance away from the funeral. Yami stopped as well, glancing over at the group of people, spotting Tristan standing beside Serenity, looking torn. He sighed and ducked his head, glancing up as Yugi rested his hand on Yami's arm. "You should go."

"No. Let them have their funeral without me ruining it." When Yugi gave him a confused look, Yami shook his head. "Apparently the people here think I'm nothing more than a con-man and a murder. It explains a lot about them, but I'd still rather avoid them."

He gave a nervous laugh before falling silent, noticing that Yugi was looking at him with worry. Yami sighed and stuck his hands into his pockets. "Just don't worry about me, I've been fine for five years and I'll be fine afterward."

"You haven't been." Yugi cleared his throat, crossing his arms across his chest as he watched the proceedings. "I haven't been fine in two hundred forty-seven thousand years. It's the doubt that gets to you and then you just stop caring. You may feel fine, but you're not. And it drives me crazy at times because everyone else can see it, but I can't, not unless they tell me. You know what I mean?"

Yami nodded slowly, shifting slightly so he could lean against Yugi. It amazed him that they could work so well together after just meeting. He supposed that it had something to do with the balance thing that Yugi had explained to him earlier, but he wanted to believe that the two of them would have been best friends if they had met under different circumstances. He wanted to believe that they felt comfortable around each other because they were such a good team, not just this balance thing. "Yeah. It feels good to have someone to talk to."

Yugi nodded, sighing and shifting so his head was resting on Yami's shoulder. "Did you have others?"

He shook his head, sticking his hands into his pocket and watching the funeral proceedings. "Joey is busy and Tèa was my only other friend. In fact, I wouldn't know Joey if I hadn't met Tèa. No one else was around after…"

Yugi gave his back a rub, the motion more for comfort than anything else. Yami ducked his head at that, staring at the ground. He didn't usually talk about Tèa with others, let alone allowed himself to think about her. He might protest the fact that they all thought that he had murdered her, but there was still some part of him that believed it. He sighed, rolling his shoulders before starting as Yugi moved away from him, the reaper looking over his shoulder.

Yami turned around, his eyes widening for a moment before he calmed himself down, raising a hand to wave at Mai as the police officer walked his way. She hesitated a moment before returning the wave, coming to a stop beside him. She gave Yugi a glance before raising an eyebrow at Yami. "He's cute."

"Wha-" Yami blinked before blushing. "Oh no, we're not like that. We're just friends."

"You never say that. It's like saying 'He's up for grabs'." Mai shook her head. "What am I going to do with you, Yami? How am I supposed to focus my attention on Joey when his best friend his nearly hopeless?"

She laughed, Yami shooting a glare at Yugi as he chuckled as well. "You're all against me."

"No. We're just here to help you." Mai patted his shoulder before drawing herself back, Yami recognizing the shift from her usual attitude to the one that she kept in place as a cop. He took a deep breath to steady himself for any news that she could give him. "But that's beside the point. I think you know that the government is suddenly interested in these deaths."

Yami tensed at that, Mai reaching out to hold onto his shoulder. "You know that we're not going to let them bring you in unless they have something substantial. There's nothing on you in connection to Tèa's death or any of the other cases."

"Then why was I brought in nearly every time?" He felt her hand slip from his shoulder, replaced by Yugi's hand slipping into his own, holding it.

Mai cleared her throat, glancing down at the funeral before reaching back to secure her ponytail. "We didn't know. I didn't like it and neither did Joey, but the others were more than happy to see you go in, because it was at least someone, but they all knew that it couldn't have been you, because all the victims suffered from heart attacks."

"Heart attacks?"

She nodded, reaching into her pocket for a little notepad before pulling it out. "I've been looking over all the reports and they all mention that they look like heart attacks, but they're not."

Yami stared at her with his mouth hanging open. "But you said…"

"They're calling them heart attacks because there's nothing else to call them. And those reports go into detail about what they find, and it's nothing like a heart attack. They have clear arteries and nothing else in their history seems to point towards a heart attack." Mai frowned glancing over her notes before pocketing them again. "What they can figure out is that the heart his under enormous pressure before these people die, like it's being squeezed by something."

Yami's eyes went wide, the words escaping his mouth before he could stop them. "Like what Tristan said…"

Mai tipped her head to the side, the only sign that she had heard him speak before continuing. "Apparently this has gone on for too long and the government wants to see if it can be stopped. They're sending someone over today."

"And you came to tell me this because?"

"Yami, you know what's going to happen." Mai gave him a long look. "Between the paper and your record before, they're going to bring you in and talk to you. But you have the right to know that there is no case connecting you to any of their deaths, even Tèa's."

Yami swallowed nervously before nodding. "Thanks, Mai."

The police woman gave him a smile, turning to walk back to her car only to pause, looking over her shoulder at him. "Hey, if any of those ghosts can tell you anything, just come to us and we'll figure out how to get it into this case."

Yami gave Mai a wave, tensing when she threw a wink back at Yugi before walking away. He turned to look at Yugi, noticing that the reaper was blushing. Yugi glanced over at him before ducking his head again. "Uh…"

"You get used to Mai. She's like that with everyone."

"Oh." Yugi shuffled a bit in place before looking back up at the funeral, Yami following his gaze and tensing when he realized that everyone was leaving. He had hoped to be hidden or waiting back at the car before it let out so he could avoid all of the people, all of the people that he was sure had at least seen the paper this morning before they had come here.

And, sure enough, there were plenty of glares in his direction, Yami backing up to stand on the edge of the path as the people filed past. He felt Yugi keep a tight hold on his hand; that little bit of reassurance just enough to keep him from breaking and seeking out a place to hide. But that still didn't stop him from flinching away every time someone shot a glare at him, finally shrinking back against Yugi in an attempt to escape from the crowd of people.

"Yami!" He jumped at the sound of his name, turning to see Serenity hurrying over to him. The red head gave him a smile before looking at the rest of the mourners. "Can you meet me later?"

"Meet you?"

"I read the paper this morning; I know what these people think of you but…" She sniffed and wiped the tears from her face, trying to smile. "I know it's not true. And I just…I just want to talk to Tristan one last time." Serenity glanced over at Yugi and then down at their joined hands. "You can bring your boyfriend too but, please, just come."

Yami nodded, Serenity rushing off after the rest of the mourners. He jerked slightly as he realized what she had said, looking over at Yugi. "You're not my boyfriend."

Yugi stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter, Yami watching in shock as Yugi leaned on him, the reaper wrapping his arms around Yami's waist and hugging him close as he laughed. Yami blinked before wrapping his arms around Yugi, smiling himself as Yugi managed to get his laughter back under control and snuggled close to him with a happy hum. The thought that this was not appropriate behavior for a graveyard passed through his mind for a moment, but it was quickly pushed away as he cuddled Yugi close.

The sound of someone clearing their throat made Yami look up, finding himself staring up at Tristan. To his surprise, his initial reaction was to pull Yugi closer instead of pushing him away. He did straighten up, meeting Tristan's embarrassed gaze. The ghost cleared his throat again before looking over to where Serenity was walking away. "So, what did she want?"

"She wants to talk to you. We're meeting up later." Tristan smiled at that, walking quickly after the rest of the mourners, probably to wait for the two of them at the car. Yami sighed and shook his head, Yugi reaching up to rest a hand on his cheek. Yami leaned into the touch, allowing them to stay like that a moment more before he reached down for Yugi's hand, the two of them walking out of the cemetery.

* * *

Serenity fiddled with her bracelet as she sat at the table, tempted to reach for her cell phone out and check for messages, but it would just be the same as before. She had called Yami a few hours before to tell him where they were meeting. She glanced over at the clock, biting her lip. He still had to close up the library and get here; it was nothing to worry about. She clutched the edge of the table, taking a deep breath to try and calm herself down. If anything had happened to Yami or the others she would have heard about it before now.

She glanced up again, breathing out a relieved sigh when Yami walked in, the man from the cemetery following right behind him. Serenity straightened up with a smile, watching as Yami and the man sat down behind the table, Serenity noticing that they left one space open. She stared at the space, hoping that she would be able to see something, or someone, but there was just nothing. Serenity slumped back with a disappointed sigh, releasing her hold on the table.

"Serenity?"

"Thanks for coming." She gave Yami a smile, noticing how close he and the other man were sitting. "I know that with what the paper said about you this morning and everything else, this is probably the last thing that you want to do."

"It's fine." Yami waved her comment aside, glancing around the small coffee shop that they had met it before returning his attention to her.

She glanced over at the other man, surprised at the bright smile that he gave her. "I don't think we've met. I'm Yugi Mutou."

"Hey Yugi." She shook his hand before leaning forward again, looking over at the empty seat beside her, tipping her head in its direction. "Is Tristan here?" Yami nodded, Serenity shifting so that she was facing Tristan a bit more than the others. "Can he hear me?"

"He can hear everything you say." Yami smiled. "I'm just here for the responses."

Serenity gave an uneasy laugh, pushing her hair behind her ears. "Now that I'm here, I don't know what to say. This morning, I just wanted anything to be with him again and to talk to him." She bit her lip to keep from crying, she had done enough of that at the funeral and afterwards when she had gotten home. She just wanted this one hour where she wouldn't break down into tears. Serenity reached up to wipe the few drops that escaped from her eyes. "I just…it was too soon."

"Hey," she jumped when Yami leaned forward to rest one of his hands over hers, giving her a smile, "it's alright. It's going to be alright. Maybe not now or tomorrow, or even the next day. But it's going to be alright."

She stared at him for a moment before shaking her head, moving her hand out from under Yami's and returning to her staring at the table, fighting back the tears. She didn't look up as Yami sighed, tensing as he spoke. "Tristan says that he loves you. And that he's sorry."

"Sorry? What does he have to be sorry for?"

"For leaving you." Serenity looked up abruptly at that, staring at Yami. Some rebellious part of herself almost believed what the newspaper had said about him, that he was only doing this because he could get something from her. But there was sincerity in his voice and real pity in his eyes. She watched him shift nervously in his seat, looking away from her.

"H-he said that?"

"Yes." Yami nodded.

"But it's not his fault." Serenity almost laughed at that, it was just like Tristan for him to place the blame on himself for this. "It's the fault of this…thing that's killing off people. But, that's so Tristan."

She couldn't believe she was smiling at this point, glancing down at her ring finger and playing with the ring on it. "He was always apologizing for things that weren't his fault. Even though I told him to stop, he never would; he kept treating me like I could do no wrong."

Serenity thought she felt something cold brush across her hand, glancing up at Yami with wide eyes before reaching out to rest her other hand over the cold sensation, trying to ignore the fact that her body was telling her that something was wrong. It couldn't be wrong because it was Tristan and, out of all the choices that she had made in her life, Tristan was one of the better ones. She smiled, tilting her head to the side before looking over at Yami, the happy feeling that had almost returned disappearing as quickly as it had come. "Why did he stay?"

"Tristan says that he didn't move on because he had to know that you were alright."

"Will he leave now?"

"No." There was no hesitation in the reply. "Not for a year, and maybe not then. He wants to be sure you'll be alright."

"He doesn't have to stay for me."

"He wants to, Serenity. It means a lot to him that he stays to watch over you."

Serenity bit her lip before turning to look at Yami. "How long did Tèa stay behind?"

Yami tensed at that before looking away, Serenity quickly covering her mouth as she realized what she had said. She glanced over at Yami's friend, watching him reach up to place a hand on Yami's shoulder. He was the one to answer instead of Yami. "Not everyone becomes a ghost. It depends on the emotions at the time, and sometimes just luck. They may chose not to move on, but there might not be enough emotional input in the area that they are in to support them, so the end up going to the afterlife anyway."

"Yami, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it." Serenity watched as he turned back around, seeing his usual mask slip back into place. "Anything else you want to ask him?"

She stared at him for a long while, aware that she was probably making him uncomfortable, but unable to look away. How could they all have missed it for so long? Serenity blinked and looked away, blushing at her own mistake. "H-how long have you been able to see ghosts?"

"Me?"

"The both of you."

Yugi gave her a smile before sitting back, settling mostly against Yami. "I've been able to see ghosts all my life."

He glanced up at Yami, Serenity frowning as Yami refrained from speaking for a long while. She was beginning to think that she had misjudged her question when he finally did speak up. "Just for a few years. Some people say that having a traumatic experience changes your prospective on things."

"So, after the accident?" Yami just nodded, slumping further into his seat. Serenity bit her lip, glancing over at Yugi to see what his reaction was; Yugi seemed a lot better about judging Yami than she was. But even he was watching Yami worriedly. Serenity looked back over to where Tristan was; hoping that she might get a clue from him, but the empty space was as silent as ever. She sighed and slumped back into her seat. "Well, I'm sure you two have other things to do, I won't keep you here."

Yami nodded slowly, standing up. Serenity was surprised when he motioned for Yugi to sit back down. "I'll be back in a moment."

He turned and walked away quickly, heading for the bathrooms. Serenity stared after him before dropped her head into her hands with a groan. "I messed that up completely."

"No you didn't." Yugi was leaning on one hand, an elbow propped on the surface of the table. "There's no way you could make that less awkward."

"I wish I could. I invited him here after all. And he's been through a lot. Half of the calls that Joey used to make to me when I didn't live around here were him worrying about Yami."

"Yami is stronger than you think, probably than he thinks." Yugi hummed to himself, closing his eyes for a moment. "But you're pretty strong too, you're handling this well."

"Yeah, that's because I heard the story of what Yami went through." Serenity shook her head and leaned forward. "Because of the way they found them, they had to question Yami. So he literally woke up, got told that his wife was dead and then got asked if he had murdered her."

Yugi frowned at that. "Why would he murder her?"

Serenity blushed, realizing that she had gone too far. But Yugi's confused gaze encouraged her to go on. If this man was Yami's boyfriend, he should know the answer already. "Because…I shouldn't really tell you. It's his story to tell."

"Then how do you-"

"Joey. There was a time that he was really worried that Yami might try suicide, but he got over his depression." Serenity gave a shrug before sitting back. "And, seeing him now, I'm still scared for him. He's jumpy and shy around other people. Until now, he almost never came out of his house when he didn't have to. And it wasn't healthy."

Yugi gave a strained laugh. "Are you his doctor?"

"No. But it's the doctor side of me that's worried." Serenity sighed, shaking her head and focusing on Yugi with a smile. "But don't let that stop you. If you like him, grab him before some other guy does."

"Oh." Yugi ducked his head. "We're not dating."

"You're not." Serenity leaned forward, relieved that she had something else to focus on now. "But you two act like it."

"Yeah. The attraction might be there, we're just taking it slow."

"Might be." Serenity rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything else, dropping her gaze to stare at the table and clearing her throat. "But thanks for coming, Yugi. You have no idea how much better this made me feel."

He gave her a nod before getting up and walking away, Serenity starting at the cold touch to her hand before relaxing. She was always going to jump at that, just because it was so unexpected. She sighed and leaned her head to the side, surprised when she felt another cold spot against her cheek, and then it was gone, Serenity sitting up and raising her hand to rest on her cheek. Tristan had kissed her good-bye, like he always had and, somehow, that just made her hurt more; because there would be a time when the kisses didn't come anymore. And she would never know until that moment that Tristan was really gone.

* * *

Yami took a deep breath, clutching at the sink for a moment before looking up at his reflection. He looked as shaken as he felt. He ran a hand over his face before letting go of the sink, staring at his reflection in the mirror. He had never expected this meeting to turn to Tèa; he had thought that Serenity would be so focused on her own loss that she would ignore his. But, then again, Serenity was used to it on some level, she was a doctor. He closed his eyes with a sigh, leaning on the sink again.

It hurt to realize that Tèa hadn't stayed behind for him. He knew that Holloway Road had plenty of ghosts, so it could have supported her ghost as well. But she hadn't stayed behind, she had left him. He shivered, slumping forward as he tried to get control of himself again. He wasn't going to walk back out there like this.

To think that a marriage in name only could have affected him so much.

Yami gave a harsh laugh, raising his gaze so he was staring at his reflection again, finding himself wondering what Tèa had seen in him. He had been the quiet, nerdy kid his entire life, preferring to be on his own because finding people who understood him was just too much of an effort. Tèa had been the girl on the fringe of the popular crowd, but she had worked hard. He had tutored her in history once in fifth grade and they had been friends ever since; most people found that fact alone hard to believe. It shouldn't have worked, but it did.

It even worked when Yami had reluctantly admitted that he was gay and Joey had been added to their small group. And they had stayed that way until college. Tèa had gone off to live her dream in New York, Joey had gone a few towns over to go to college and prove that he wasn't a loser and Yami had gone to the nearest community college to gain his degree in history, only to be employed at the local library, not that he minded much.

Then the call had come, just a few months after he had graduated, the call from a tearful Tèa saying that she had just been diagnosed with cancer, and she was coming home. Yami had been the one to meet her at the airport, the one to take her to all of her appointments and the one that she had shared all her fears with. As a joke, he had asked her what she wanted to do with the time she had left and she had only one thing on her list; getting married. So he had asked her.

For his best friend, he could do that.

A smile crossed his face at the memory of the wedding, more than half of Fairwater confused as to what was going on, but Yami didn't tell them anything, it was Tèa's moment to shine, and she looked gorgeous. Of course, just a week later she had lost all of her hair because of the chemotherapy treatment; but she had joked that Yami had enough for the both of them.

And they had been happy, blissfully happy. It was almost like college again, in a way, his best friend living in his house, the two of them sometimes staying up a bit too late watching horrible movies or crazy internet videos. It had probably been the happiest time in his life.

Until Tèa had gotten sick, and she had never gotten better. She put off going to the hospital for weeks until Yami convinced her. And, because he was scared for his best friend he had taken the fasted route to the main road, which was Holloway. And of course he would be going to fast, because Tèa was in trouble and he was the one that was going to help her.

But he had killed her.

Yami let his head drop again, shuddering as he tried to keep from crying. It wouldn't help now and it was for a selfish reasons. He just wanted her back to apologize and in the hope that his life would suddenly go back to normal. And that was the first thing he thought of every time. He never thought that she wouldn't have wanted to stay, constantly being sick or almost too sore to move only to have to die a year down the road. If he had that chance, he would have chosen to die in a car crash rather than to just waste away in pain.

He jumped as another man entered the bathroom, shying to one side as he walked over to the urinals. The man gave him a glare, probably recognizing him from the paper that morning before going about his business. Yami sighed and shook his head, glancing back to the door before checking his reflection in the mirror. He looked calm enough now that he could face Serenity and Yugi; especially Yugi. They had only met a day ago and he was already depending on that safe feeling he got around the reaper to stay sane.

Yami went to leave the bathroom, freezing suddenly as he saw something moving in the mirror, his mouth dropping open as the thing moved through the wall, disappearing behind the partition of the bathroom stalls. Yami backed away from the mirror, giving the bathroom door one last glance before standing up and looking at the stalls. He crept over to the first one, easing it open a bit before charging in, glancing around for any disturbance. He backed out when there was nothing there, watching the other man out of the corner of his eye. He froze as he caught something on the man's forehead, his eyes widening at the number thirty-eight that was written there, in the same manner that the number had been on Tristan's forehead.

The man stared at him for a moment before retreating for the sinks, Yami shaking his head and lunging into the next stall, frowning when there was nothing there. He glanced over his shoulder at the mirror again before staring at the stall. He was sure that the thing had come to this side of the room, he had already compensated for the reflection. It had to be somewhere, unless his crazy searching had just scared it away. Yami sighed, leaning heavily on the door as he stared into the bathroom, feeling himself begin to shake. What if he was just imagining things?

He jumped at the sound of a screech, spinning around, his mouth dropping open. Pulling itself from the mirror was a creature clothed entirely in black, a cowl over its head. Yami stared at it as it continued to move from the mirror into the room, one of its hands buried in the man's chest. His gaze darted to the man, watching as he collapsed backward, the man's eyes falling shut. Yami shivered and took a step forward, jumping back as the creature turned to look at him with a hiss, yanking its hand from the man's chest before turning and leaping back into the mirror.

Yami scrambled forward, reaching out to touch the man, searching for his pulse only to find none. He stared at him for a moment, jumping out of the way as a bright light surrounded the man, pressing himself against the wall as he watched the man's soul sit up, staring at his translucent body before glancing up at the light. A smile crossed his face before he stood up, lifting up slightly. "Mom!"

The light disappeared as suddenly as it had come, Yami staring at the body before clambering to his feet. He only then realized how heavily he was breathing, backing away from the body. He had to get out of here before it struck again. He was the only one that could see it, and it was the one that was killing people. Yami pushed through the door, rushing for the front doors, barely hearing Yugi call out to him. "Yami!"

He rushed over to his car, standing beside it and looking up at the roof of the building. With the sun setting, it was hard to see what was really a shadow and what wasn't. He sighed, and looked back towards the café, smiling as he saw that Yugi was walking towards him. He tensed as he saw something move out of the corner of his eye, watching as Yugi turned to look too. They watched as the creature screeched, jumping from the top of one building to the next, disappearing from sigh. Yami cursed, turning around to fumble for his keys before sliding into the car.

Yugi stepped forward, both of them freezing as screams came from the restaurant. Yami swallowed before jerking his head towards the car, Yugi sprinting for it before sliding it. Yami turned his gaze back to front, watching as the reaper continued jumping over the buildings, heading further away from them. "Hang on Yugi."

He pulled the car out, his eyes focused on the creature that was bobbing just ahead of them. Besides him, he could see Yugi clinging to the handle above the door, looking just as focused as he was.

"Hey, what's that?" Yami glanced up in his rearview mirror, raising an eyebrow at the sight of the three ghosts hunched in the back seat before returning his gaze to the front, watching the creature. It seemed to be moving slowly, Yami easily keeping up as it hopped from house to house, the distances greater now that it had cleared the center of town.

He heard Yugi turn around, the reaper making an annoyed sound. "What are you three doing here?"

Tomoya was the one who spoke up. "Duke said that we had to make sure that Yami would be alright. He said something about not trusting that reaper." The high schooler yelped as Duke whacked his shoulder, Yami glancing up at the rearview mirror to see Tomoya flinching away. He glanced back at the road, quickly searching out the creature. "Well, you did Duke!"

"We have other things to worry about!" Yami snapped back at them, leaning forward to try and catch what the creature was doing, his eyes widening as it leapt from a rooftop, the distance to the next roof forcing the creature to land on the road. Yami immediately backed off the gas, staring at it as it turned its head to look at them. Yami heard Yugi gasp, a shiver running up his own spine as he heard the creature give a hiss before it lunged for them. He yelped and braked hard, flinching as his seat belt cut into him, frantically trying to keep the car from swerving out of his control as the creature landed on the hood, Yami getting a glimpse of oddly colored eyes before the creature leapt over them, disappearing into the night.

He brought the car to a complete stop, staring at the empty road ahead of them. Yami swallowed harshly before looking over at Yugi, smiling at the reaper before turning around. "Everyone alright?"

Duke and Tomoya nodded, the two of them settling more comfortably in their seats, but Solomon took a while to respond, the old miner staring back at where the creature had disappeared. Yami swallowed nervously before turning back to face forward, heading for the shoulder of the road before pulling over and putting the car in park. He took a deep breath and slumped into his seat, rubbing his forehead and looking over at Yugi, smiling when the reaper reaching over to rest his hand over Yami's.

"They didn't tell you anything about a rogue reaper, did they?" Yami jumped as Solomon spoke up, staring back at the old ghost before looking at Yugi, watching as the reaper frowned.

Yugi finally shook his head. "No, but they just told me that something strange was going on and people were dying. That was even less than what they told my boss."

Solomon snorted, shaking his head. "Sounds like they're hiding something."

"I wouldn't put it past them." Yugi gave a nervous laugh. "We tend to stick to our own territory and we hate bringing others in. It would be normal if they didn't tell me everything they knew. Then again, they could be telling the truth and all of their information was less than accurate. They did have their own reaper here." He frowned, tapping his fingers on the dashboard. "But there should have been a report or a warning if a reaper went rogue. They would tell everyone as soon as they knew and if this one has been doing this for five years…we should have known by now."

"Really?" Solomon stared at Yugi for a moment before laughing. "You surprise me; I keep thinking you're young."

"I spent a good couple of decades hunting rogue reapers. I think I would know my job." Yugi gave Solomon a smile before staring ahead. "But this one…it isn't a reaper, it doesn't feel like a reaper, but it doesn't feel like a ghost. I don't know what it is."

Yami glanced quickly between the two of them before looking at Yugi, catching the reaper's gaze. "Rogue?"

Yugi hesitated for a moment before unbuckling his seatbelt and crawling into Yami's lap, Yami hearing Duke suck in a quick breath at the move. He was about to turn and glare at the ghost when Yugi forced him to look forward again. "A rogue reaper is one who has gone against the rules; either they decided to or…they lost their balance." Yugi looked away. "It's why I want you to leave here. I don't want you caught up in all of this."

"Yugi…" He sighed and tipped his head forward, resting it against Yugi's forehead. "It's a bit too late for that, don't you think?"

Yugi opened his mouth to say something, shutting it quickly as Solomon spoke up, Yami sighing and letting Yugi slide away from him so he could turn around and look at the old miner. "Well, whatever it is, rogue or not, it's a problem. It's been hunting us here for a while, and no one is safe."

Yami jumped as he saw a flash of light out of the corner of his eye, turning around to look back towards town, staring at the tunnel of light that lowered from the clouds, tracing it back to the small local museum that they had. He shook his head, mouth open in shock. He had seen that creature kill once already, not ten minutes before, and now it had already struck again. Yami growled before reaching forward to put the car into drive, making a quick u-turn to head back into town.


	8. Murder

** Chapter Seven: Murder **

Serenity slumped in her chair as the police officers took the body of the man out, shooting a glare at the hysterical women who were clinging to their men or each other, sobbing with fright. It was just a body; there was nothing there to be afraid of. She sighed and ran a hand over her face, tensing as she saw Joey walk into the café, not knowing whether to curse her luck or praise God.

Her brother immediately spotted her, rushing over and plopping down at a chair. "I just heard. Are you alright?"

She stared at him for a moment before she registered that he was talking about the death of her husband, coughing before ducking her head. How could she have forgotten that? A lot of things had happened to her today, but that was no reason to forget that. Serenity shivered as a cold spot appeared on her shoulder, blinking quickly before giving a long sigh. Of course, she could just be pushing her grief back for the moment when she got home or when Tristan's ghost finally left for the afterlife, leaving her alone. She glanced up at Joey again before nodding. "I'm fine. Just a bit overwhelmed."

Joey sighed, slumping against the table before looking back at the crowd of other people in the café before rubbing his forehead. "Damn, I didn't mean you to get mixed up in this."

"Mixed up in this?"

"You know what I mean." He ran his hand through his hair. "I should have warned you away from Fairwater with all of this going on."

"It's not your fault, Joey."

Her brother just nodded, waving her comment away before turning back to look at the people there. "Listen, I need to know why you were here, for the investigation."

"I was talking to Yami." Serenity flinched, hating that she felt guilty for talking to the man. What the paper had said wasn't true; she had proof of that herself.

Joey cursed, leaning back in his chair and staring up at the ceiling. "Of course he would be here. Of course. Now we'll have to bring him in again and question him. And he'll have nothing to do with it and it's just another blow for him. Can't the universe give Yami a break? For once?" He sat up straight again, glancing toward the bathroom. "Serenity, I'll take you back to the station with me and drive you home tonight. You can pick up your car tomorrow. Deal?"

She nodded, standing up and following Joey from the café. It was easier just to have someone tell her what to do for the moment, Serenity reluctant to actually start thinking of starting her life without Tristan in the morning. Tonight she would just hang around the police station, maybe fall asleep on the couch in the break room, and help Joey try and figure out what was going on in Fairwater. Tomorrow would be the time for trying to sort her life out again.

And she was not looking forward to it.

* * *

Yami pulled the car into a parking space outside the museum, quickly dashing out of the car, hearing Yugi shouting at him to wait up. But he couldn't. There was something driving him to find out what had happened, especially if it would give him a clue about Tèa. He wanted to know what had happened to her so he could stop believing that it had been his fault. If he could do this, then he could clear his name and stop being dragged into the police station, stop being so jumpy. And maybe he could actually allow himself to be something other than friends with Yugi in good conscious.

The reaper already had enough trouble from the ghosts; Yami didn't want him to be stuck with a murderer for the rest of time.

He barged into the museum, looking around at the frontier exhibit that was now on display, belatedly remembering that the town had been advertising its arrival for the past month. It was supposed to be something about their heritage, but that was all that Yami remembered. His gaze darted over the exhibits in the hall without really seeing them. He was too focused on all the people that had gathered there, probably for the opening itself. Now, they were just in a tight circle around something on the floor, Yami glancing up at the white light that filtered in from the ceiling before stepping forward, pushing his way into the circle.

Yami saw the ghost first; it was leaning forward with its hands on its knees. Yami moved closer, watching the ghost turn to look at him. Automatically, he looked for the number on the man's forehead, not surprised when he found the number thirty-nine there, just like the others. He looked away at the confused look that the ghost gave him, taking a step back.

The light thinned before vanishing completely, Yami looking back over to see that the ghost had gone, breathing out a relieved sigh. That was one less ghost that he would have to deal with, having Tristan around would confuse things enough; but at least he could trust Tristan to stick close to Serenity.

"Yami!" He turned as Yugi rushed over to him, giving the reaper a tired smile before jerking his head back towards the doors. They had been too late to see the creature, to either catch it or stop it; which meant that they would just have to wait for the next death that they were at to spot it, a bad idea anyway. He would rather stay away from all of the mysterious deaths, just because it would already look suspicious. He reached out to grab Yugi's hand, wanting to center himself again when he heard a cold laugh from the edge of the crowd.

"Have you come to deliver some message to the rest of us from our dearly departed?" Rebecca sniffed, wiping the tears from her face. Yami took a step back, shaking his head. Rebecca just laughed again. "Well you won't find any customers here. I think you'll find your presence is not needed."

Yugi grabbed his arm and began tugging him to the entrance, Yami glaring back at Rebecca before turning around, coming to a stop as he stared at the two police officers entering the museum. They stared at him for a moment, glancing between him and Yugi before one of them stepped forward. "We're bringing you in."

"F-for what?"

"A man was found dead in the bathroom of the Downtown Café, and you were the last person to talk to him."

Yami spun around to look at the group as they gasped, staring at all of the horrified faces. He knew what they were all thinking, what conclusion they were jumping to. Most of the people in Fairwater already thought that he had killed Tèa; it wasn't too far of a jump for them to believe that he was the one behind the other deaths. And he hadn't helped by becoming reclusive and jumpy after Tèa's death.

He looked at Rebecca, his eyes widening as he stared at the number on her forehead, the number forty glowing slightly against her skin. "You're next."

Yami didn't realize that he had spoken until Rebecca let out a squeak and began to back away. "He's threatening to kill me. You all heard it. He's threatening to kill me."

"No. No!" Yami pushed away from Yugi, ignoring the reaper's attempts to draw him back. He wanted to stop this now before it got too out of hand. "That's not what I meant."

"Hey, hey!" He turned around as one of the officers shouted, his eyes going wide as he watched them pull out their guns, taking aim at him. "Stay right there!"

Yami froze, staring between the officers and the frightened crowd. There was no way to make this situation better, and he had a feeling that the two police officers wouldn't mind bringing him in with a graze. He rubbed his arms, shifting nervously in place as he tried to think of a way out, but all he could think of was how much he just wanted to go hide in a dark corner. He glanced back towards Yugi, one of his hands tightening on his arm as he saw the scared look on the reaper's face.

Something rippled in the shadows behind Yugi, the reaper going stiff and slowly turning to look. Yami stared at the shape that emerged, shivering as the creature prowled along the edge of the room, turning to hiss at the cops before looking back towards the group of people, its hooded head jerking as it searched out Rebecca. He tensed as it spotted her; the creature's shoulders rising up at it began to stalk its prey. "Oh God."

He took a step towards Rebecca, jumping at the click of one of the guns behind him, Yami glancing over his shoulder before looking back at Rebecca. If he didn't do anything, then another person would be dead, and he couldn't have that on his conscious. He swallowed before lunging forward.

A gun went off, Yami slamming into Rebecca and pushing her to the ground before rolling over, expecting to be bleeding. Instead, he heard the creature screeching in pain, watching as it flailed. He staggered to his feet, pulling Rebecca up with him and letting go of her wrist as he watched Solomon walk forward, the Colt Peacemaker that the old miner held in his hand shaking slightly. Solomon gave him a single glance before focusing on the creature again, shooting at it again. "Run, Yami!"

Yami stumbled backwards, turning around before dashing towards the front door, away from the creature. He saw the police officers, raise their guns, keeping them trained on him even as he ran. He just hoped that they would keep from shooting; Joey probably wanted him alive. But there was no telling what they would do, especially now that the deaths seemed to be coming at shorter intervals. Fear was a powerful motivator.

He relaxed a bit when he saw the officers relax, sidling closer to Yugi. The reaper gave a relieved sigh before moving closer to him. They both froze as the officers tensed again, their guns rising up again. Yami sucked in a quick breath, holding up his hands in a motion of surrender. If he couldn't sneak past these men, then he would allow himself to be taken in, but he would find some way to get Rebecca to come with them. She would be safer if either Yugi or himself was watching her.

Yami turned his gaze back to the creature, watching as it shrunk into the shadows of a corner, seeming to glare at Solomon before it turned to search for Rebecca again, Yami shivering as it looked at him. The creature tensed, Yami watching it rise up from its crouch. The pistol clicked as the next chamber came up empty, Solomon staring at the useless gun in his hand before looking up at the creature.

The creature seemed to smirk to itself, drawing itself up further and reaching into the cloak and pulling out a stick, twisting the handle until it extended. Yami stared at the staff, swallowing as the creature tapped it against the ground and watching as the blade slid out of the handle. He gasped, hearing a soft muttered exclamation from Yugi. He turned slightly to see Yugi's expression, stopping partially through the turn to stare as the creature jerked forward, bringing the scythe down and through Solomon.

"No!" He jumped at the sound of his own shout, watching the ghost of the old minor fall to the ground in two halves, the creature following the motion. One hand twisted around the scythe, the blade disappearing into the handle as it shrunk, while the other reached into the upper half of Solomon, pulling out something pulsing with a soft light. Yami's mouth dropped open as he stared at the light in the creature's hand, his eyes widening as the creature crushed the light in its hand, jerking back around as something pulled on his arm.

"Yami!" Yugi pulled him back, glancing at the officers before giving Yami a shove towards the door. "Run."

He took an awkward step, glancing back to where Solomon's body was fading away on the floor before rushing for the door, ignoring the shouts of the officers. He just wanted to get out of there before something horrible happened to him, and he hated himself for his cowardice. Yami glanced up, spotting Rebecca standing but the door, shaking in horror. He made a split second decision, grabbing Rebecca's wrist and pulling her out the door with him. He would try and make one person survive this encounter with that creature.

Yami ignored her protests as she tried to get away from him, dragging her to his car and nearly throwing her at it. "Get in."

Rebecca stared at him for a moment before scoffing. "You're insane."

He lunged after her when she tried to dart away, grabbing her arm and yanking the car door open. "Get in and you'll live."

"Are you threatening me?" Yami rolled his eyes and shoved her into the car, sliding over the hood to get to the other side. He opened his door, slamming his hand down on the lock to keep Rebecca escaping. He flopped into his seat, using the moment to glance in the rearview mirror, looking for Tomoya and Duke; surprised to find them gone. He glanced back to the museum, hoping to see if his two friends were there, only to see Yugi rushing out. He breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of the reaper.

Right behind Yugi came the two officers, the reaper caught by them and a gun put to his head to stop him from struggling. Yugi froze, staring over at him with a frightened expression, that look alone almost enough to make Yami rush from the car, but a single shake of Yugi's head kept him still. "Just go!"

Yami shook his head in horror, his gaze jumping to the creature as it crawled from the shadows by the door, looking between the creature and Yugi. One quick glance brought the number on Rebecca's forehead into his line of vision, Yami trembling at that. This wasn't a choice that he wanted to make, the choice between someone's life and the one that had started to make his life tolerable again. Yami bit his lip, turning to stare at Yugi, surprised to see that Duke was standing behind the reaper with a smile on his face. The ghost reached out to touch Yugi's shoulder, Yami watching as the reaper started before turning around.

He ducked his head at that, starting the car with a long sigh. Yugi would be alright, if Duke was willing to watch over him, then Yugi would be alright. And he could trust Joey to keep the reaper safe. Yami looked up, taking a deep breath before stepping on the gas pedal, and speeding away. Now all he had to outrun the rogue reaper that was trying to kill Rebecca.

Yami ignored her scared squeak, listening to the shouts of the two officers. But they wouldn't be coming after him; only two had come, which meant only one car between them. They would go back to the station and take Yugi with them. Yami whimpered at that thought, trying to get himself back under control. He had barely known Yugi for a day and he was already this dependant on him. Yami gave his head a shake, forcing all thoughts of Yugi from his mind. He would do this without thinking about the reaper, he would do this to try and make up for Tèa's death. And then, once that was done, he could go back to being normal.

A screech from outside pulled his attention away from his inner struggle, Yami leaning forward to try and see where the creature was, watching as the black shadow overshot them. He glanced over at Rebecca, watching her grip her seatbelt and whimper. He didn't waste his time trying to reassure her, it wouldn't have worked anyway. Rebecca had gotten it into her head that he couldn't be trusted and nothing would be able to change her mind.

The creature landed on the road, balancing itself there for a moment before lunging at the car, Yami instinctively jerking the wheel to the right, surprised when the creature gave up the chase, disappearing into the shadows. He frowned at that, straightening up in his seat as he looked at the road that the creature had forced them down, wondering why it had bothered to send them into a residential neighborhood. It wouldn't be easier to get them in this area then it would be the town. Yami cautiously glanced up towards the rooftops, frowning when he couldn't spot the creature.

He glanced back at Rebecca, taking one hand off the wheel to wave to her. "Get down."

She stared at him before unbuckling her seatbelt and pressing herself against the seat, trembling badly. For a moment, she reminded him of a scared little girl, Yami rolling his eyes at the thought. Of all the things he could compare to Rebecca Hawkins, a scared little girl was not one of the first ones that should have come to him.

His attention was jerked back to the road as he heard the creature scream again, his eyes widening as he realized where they were coming out towards. Just down the hill they were cresting was Holloway Road, and it would be another right turn. Yami swallowed nervously, hearing Rebecca muttering under her breath and making soft sobbing sounds.

Sure enough, the creature jumped in front of them, staring at them before lunging for them again. Yami tried to force himself to drive straight on, surprised when the reaper just let him go. He spent a moment wondering what it was trying to do, jumping when he heard the sound of something landing on the roof and then the scrape of claws on metal.

Something sliced through the roof, Yami leaning to the side to avoid the blade of the scythe, his eyes wide as the move forced them onto Holloway Road. He cursed, correcting himself so he wouldn't fly off on the first turn, hunching down in his seat to try and avoid the blade of the scythe as it moved over his head, glancing over at Rebecca. "Oh God, I'm going to die. I'm going to die!"

Rebecca chocked on one of her sobs, her eyes watering as she coughed into her hand, Yami staring at her. Something sharp slipped under his chin, Yami lifting one hand from the wheel to try and pull the blade of the scythe away from his neck, feeling the blood begin to drip down his chin. Yami gasped for air, his nails scraping over the blade. Another serious of coughs made him look over towards Rebecca, his eyes widening when he saw his wife in the place of the annoying reporter and he remembered.

He remembered driving down this road, glancing over at Tèa every time she gave one of those loud coughs that sounded like she could be dying. He remembered trying to go as fast as he could around the turns so he could get Tèa to the hospital faster, cursing himself for the long wait. And he remembered coming up to one curve and realizing at the last moment that he was going too fast, that he wouldn't be able to slow down in time.

He blinked again, gasping and trying to reach the brake, realizing that the creature had managed to pull him far enough away that he couldn't hit the brakes, Yami staring ahead in shock as the car went over the curve, heading for a clear spot between trees. He felt the blade slide out from under his neck, sure that the creature was jumping before they crashed, Yami yelping as the car rolled upside down, hearing Rebecca screaming in fear.

The car came to a stop after rolling one more time, landing slightly lopsided and pressed against a tree. Yami groaned, resting his head back against the seat and glaring at the steering wheel. The airbag was supposed to deploy in situations like this, but it hadn't. He gritted his teeth, shifting so he was a bit more upright in his seat instead of falling over towards the passenger side. Yami rubbed his head and reached down to unbuckle his seatbelt, pausing as he heard someone sobbing.

From her place tucked under the dashboard, Rebecca pulled herself out, taking one look at him before giving a frightened squeak and quickly crawling out through the smashed windshield, sobbing as she scrambled away. Yami cursed under his breath, fumbling for his seatbelt before sliding down onto the passenger seat. He shifted slowly, easing himself through the windshield and onto the ground, yelping when his foot caught on the windshield wiper.

He turned, trying to yank his foot free, finally pulling himself and rolling onto his side. Yami glanced up the hill before cautiously pushing himself up, gasping when his body protested. He groaned and leaned back against the tree, panting for breath as he watched Rebecca scramble away. His eyes widened when he realized that Rebecca was crawling further away from him, now nearly screaming. He cursed again and used the tree to pull himself up, clinging to it to steady himself before turning to look at Rebecca, ready to shout at her for screaming. If she kept this up, then she would bring that creature right to them, if her presence wasn't already enough to do that.

The warning died on his lips, Yami staring up at the ridge where the road was, watching as something moved in the darkness. The creature pulled itself close to the edge, peering down at them before leaping from the road, touching down once on the hill before leaping to slam into Rebecca. The blonde woman screamed as she was pushed to the ground, the creature's hand already inside her body and around her heart.

"No!" Yami shoved himself away from the tree, stumbling across the open space before launching himself for the creature. He passed right through it, slamming into the ground on the other side of Rebecca and rolling until his back hit a tree. Yami groaned and sat up, looking around fearfully, relaxing a fraction as he realized that the creature wasn't around anymore, pushing up onto his hands and knees and crawling over to Rebecca, his eyes going wide as he saw that she wasn't breathing.

With a shaky hand, he reached out to rest his fingers against her pulse point, his whole body beginning to tremble. There was nothing. He let his hand drop to the ground, shifting forward to stare at her, only to find himself meeting her blank stare. "No."

He scrambled backwards, sitting down on the forest floor and wrapping his arms around himself. This was too much like Tèa, and he hated that he was remembering this now. It had been better when he hadn't remembered any part of the accident at all. Yami shivered and pulled his knees closer to himself, ignoring the twinges of pain from his body. "This can't be happening. This can't be happening."

Yami jumped as a sudden bright light washed over them, yelping and scrambling away, watching as Rebecca's soul rose from her body, the blonde woman taking a moment to look around before spotting him. She narrowed her eyes before lunging out and grabbing his leg. Yami tried to shake her off, watching in horror as she actually began to pull him back towards her body even as the light began to pull her away. "You bastard, you killed me! You murdered me!"

"It was an accident." He managed to shake her hand off of his leg, falling onto his back and panting for breath.

Rebecca carried on like she hadn't heard him. "Did it feel good killing your wife, you pervert? Did it Yami? You're a murder!"

The light and Rebecca disappeared, Yami staring at the dead body on the ground before trying to get up, nearly falling over Rebecca's body once before he managed it. He stared down at her for a moment more before he turned and ran; wanting to get away from her body and the last words that she had spoken. It was a lie; all of it was a lie. It had to be a lie; it was the only thing keeping him sane.

But what if it wasn't a lie? What if he was the one who had killed Tèa? What if he was the reason this thing was appearing?

What if Yugi was next?

Yami began to scream, pushing himself as fast as he could, stumbling and tripping over the rocks and branches as he raced along the creek below Holloway Road.

* * *

Yugi walked into the police station, giving everything a quick look over before slipping a hand into his pocket, wanting to be able to hold his scythe. The feeling of the smooth wood against his fingers made him relax, Yugi stroking the pad of his finger against it. He stumbled backwards as he was lead back towards where the offices were, surprised to see Joey leaning against the door of one of them. The blonde turned to look over his shoulder at the sound of the two officers walking in, his eyes widening as he stared at Yugi before shaking his head. "I told you two to bring in Yami. I know this guys looks like him but-"

"There was an…incident at the museum." One of the officers sighed, shaking his head. "Yami showed up and threatened Rebecca Hawkins."

"Really? I don't blame him."

"You misunderstand, he threatening to kill her."

Joey froze at that, staring at the two officers. "That doesn't sound like Yami."

"Sir, I think in the light of all of this, it is safe to assume that Yami might be the one behind this. After all, he was the only one that survived that car wreck."

"There wasn't enough evidence!" Joey glared at them before slumping. "I know you guys are just trying to do your jobs, but I can tell you that Yami isn't the one you are looking for."

The officers shook their heads, Yugi realizing that they were just letting the subject go for now. His grip tightened on his scythe as he was escorted into the office, offered a seat in front of the desk. Yugi took the seat, surprised to find that Serenity was sitting next to him. He gave the red head a nervous wave before looking at Mai, watching as she rolled pencils over her desk.

He jumped as Joey moved to lean against the desk, the blonde officer giving an apologetic smile before leaning back. "So, you and Yami look a lot alike."

"Yeah."

"I've seen you around here once, early this morning and you're already getting into trouble. Why?"

"Listen, I'm just trying to help Yami. He offered me a place to stay for the night, so I've been sticking close." Yugi glanced out towards the other officers. "Listen, I have people that can vouch for me if you need it, just let me use my cell phone or borrow one of yours if you don't trust me."

"And I don't doubt you." Joey gave him a winning smile before sighing and sitting back. "But I need you here just for some questioning on our part…and on the government's."

Mai looked up. "I thought that he would already be here."

"No, he said something about the plane giving him a bad feeling. He's coming in on the train." Joey sighed and looked at his watch before shaking his head. "He should be here by now though."

"Well, the government waited five years to even get interested in this. What are a few more minutes?" Mai a partial smile, sitting up when one of the other officers ran into the room, glancing at them before jerking his head towards the door, Mai and Joey straightening up to see the person that was coming in. Yugi blinked quickly before sitting, watching as the man in a black trench coat shuffled in, clutching his coat close to him. He gave them a quick glance, his gaze lingering on Serenity. The man looked nervously at her, giving a little squeak before ducking down, recovering himself a moment later and sidling towards the office doors, glancing at all of them before point at Mai.

"You. Out."

Mai stared at him before glanced over Joey, the two glaring at each other before Mai rolled her eyes and stormed out of the office, the man inching into the office while keeping his eye on her. When he was sure that Mai was out of hearing range, he leaned closer to Joey. "I wouldn't trust her if I were you. Any blonde Scorpio shouldn't be trusted on Wednesdays."

The man moved back to a position close to the door, Joey and Serenity staring at him in shock. Their stares seemed to unnerve the man, the man pulling up his coat higher and clutching it closer. Joey was the first to recover, going over to the chair and sitting down. He glanced at Serenity before gesturing to the man, rolling his eyes when the man spooked at the gesture. "Serenity, this is Noa Kaiba, an agent from the FBI. He was sent here to help us finish up with this case."

Yugi glanced at Serenity, the two of them sharing a skeptical glance before he looked back at the agent. Noa shivered, glaring at him before turning so his back was partially to her, staring at Joey. "Have there been any reports of strange creatures around or odd lights in the sky?"

"No."

Noa looked flustered at that, glancing around before finally turning to Serenity with a look of disgust on his face. "Is she the witness?"

"Yes."

"Are there others?" Noa seemed relieved when Joey jerked his head towards Yugi, staring at him for a moment before frowning and looking up at the officer again. "And what about the one in the first report?"

"We're working on it."

Noa huffed and turned away, glaring at Serenity. "Alright then. Were you the last person to speak to Yami Gardener?"

"No. That was Yugi."

Noa followed her gesture, Yugi stiffening in his seat as Noa turned to stare at him. Suddenly, he wanted nothing more than to pull out his scythe and put it between him and the government agent. Noa gave a smile before releasing his hold on his coat, his fingers twitching. "Now, did Yami refer the time of three o'clock in the morning in excessive amounts?

"What?" Yugi stared at him for a moment, making sure that he was being completely serious before letting out an annoyed sigh and sitting back. "How is this relevant?"

"Just answer the questions."

"I don't know."

Noa gave him a disgusted look before turning to look at Serenity. "And I am guessing that you are here because you had contact with our suspect?" Both Yugi and Serenity tensed at the word, but Serenity nodded, Noa leaning forward with a grin. "Good. Good. Now, tell me, when did you last see Yami Gardener?"

"The café downtown."

"I see. And I assume that you were going there to discuss with the resident…psychic about your late husband." He waited for Serenity to nod before going on. "Now, did he use any excessive table salt?"

"What is the purpose of all of these questions?" Yugi stood up, glaring at Noa, surprised when Noa returned his glare. He had expected the agent to shrink back like he had in the presence of Mai. He shrunk back at that, watching as Noa fiddled with something in his pocket. "She just asked us there to talk with her dead husband."

"I think differently."

"You know nothing about what we were-"

"And you know nothing about Yami Gardener." Noa laughed, completely ignoring the enraged look from Joey, focused entirely on Yugi. He gave him a smile before taking a step back, picking at the gloves on his hands. "From what I've heard, he's nothing more than a con-man, a murderer who was let free."

"He hasn't-"

"Five years ago, on the twenty-sixth of October, neighbors report seeing Yami and his wife, Tèa, leaving their house around 10:00 PM. Now, these neighbors had said that Tèa had been sick for a few weeks, but Yami had done nothing about it."

"She had cancer." Joey spoke up, about to stand. "Everyone knew that, just like they knew that Tèa preferred to keep up the appearance that she was healthy."

"This is not about what everyone thought, it's about the facts." Noa glared at him before turning back to Yugi. "Neighbors down the street reported that they saw the Gardener's car leaving the neighborhood around 10:05, or close enough to it. They reported that the car was exceeding the speed limit and that Yami seemed in a hurry, good enough cover for him."

Yugi blinked, staring at Noa and waiting for the agent to laugh, anything to show that he wasn't sure of his facts. When Noa did nothing, Yugi forced himself to speak. "Cover?"

Noa nodded, that annoying smirk still on his face. "Or did you know? Yami is gay, a homosexual, prefers the company of other men."

Yugi's mouth dropped open at that, staring at Noa as he felt a blush rise to his cheeks. Now he knew why Yami had been accepting of all of his advances, aside from the slight pull they felt towards each other. He looked down at the floor, his hands balling into fists as he listened to Noa talk. "Now, with all of that, why would he be married to Tèa? He might have had good intentions at first, but would he have wanted to be tied down to her forever? And would she have let him do what he wanted, partner wise? Personally, I don't think so. A girl like her, marriage would mean that he would have to stay true to her. And how much would that have chafed him?"

"This sounds like a lot of guess work." Joey stood up from his place behind the desk, Noa shying away with a whimper.

"You have to try and get into the mind of your criminal, Joseph, or you will never catch him." Noa sneered at the cop before continuing on. "But those neighbors at the end of the street are the last to see the couple together. Yami, by his own admission and Joseph's own report on the crash, turned down Holloway Road, going faster than the posted speed limit."

Yugi's eyes widened, staring at Noa as the agent pulled off one glove only to put it back on. "Now, Yami kept a pocket knife on him, something from his days as a Boy Scout and to use to put books back together at his job in the library. He always kept it on him, took it out and put it right next to his keys, grabbing it had become second nature."

"What does that have to-"

"Shut up." Noa glared at him, taking off his glove again and tapping it against his thigh. "Now, there are five sharp curves on Holloway Road, just five, but many smaller curves in between. According to the report and where the car was found, Yami misjudged the distance on the second sharp curve from where Holloway let out. Their car rolled and slammed into a tree. Both Tèa and Yami survived the crash."

"Survived?" Serenity stared at Noa before turning to look at her brother. "You told me she died."

"I am not finished, Mrs. Taylor." Noa went to take his other glove off, hesitating for a moment before letting his fingers fall from the cloth. "Yami's injuries included a concussion, a broken arm and a twisted ankle, the latter he got from trying to climb the slope to get help for his wife. Tèa was relatively unharmed and managed to crawl a good way from the car."

Noa's eyes narrowed. "But that's where she died, apparently of a heart attack. And Yami was found a good hour later by Joseph Wheeler, who called for the ambulance. Now, according to the report, Yami was completely aware of the crash. But, when he woke up, he didn't remember what had happened. And his pocket knife was missing."

An hour. That was more than enough time to… Yugi shook his head, wrapping his arms around himself. It couldn't be true. He wouldn't ever feel himself drawn to a murder, it couldn't be possible. "He couldn't have."

"That is always a possibility. But Tèa's corpse had the number thirteen carved into her forehead and they had been alone on that road for an hour. Clearly enough time for Yami to murder his wife to just get her out of the way." Noa nodded to himself, slipping his glove back on. "I think I'll review the other reports and look for the evidence."

Yugi stumbled back to his chair, flopping down onto it and rubbing a hand over his face. It couldn't be possible; none of it could be possible. He knew Yami, and the human was nothing like that. Yami was jumpy and shy, but kind under all of that. It wouldn't matter if he liked guys, he still would have tried to help Tèa. And, from what Yugi could tell, Tèa had been his best friend. Yugi bit his lip and looked toward the window of the office, trying to stare at the view outside through the strips of the blinds.


	9. Helpless

** Chapter Eight: Helpless **

Yami stumbled down the street towards the police station, barely looking up at the few people that he passed along the way, hunching forward to make himself look smaller. He knew how he looked, with his clothes ripped and stained with blood from the few cuts he had gotten from the crash along with the sticks and mud that was stuck on him. And he was limping, obviously limping, down the street. The people were right to stay away from him. One look and they could have a number on their heads as well.

That creature might as well be stalking him.

Yami sighed, coming to a stop in front of the police station, staring up at it for a moment before climbing the steps, ignoring the frantic motions of Tomoya. The ghost was probably telling him not to go in, but it was the only thing he could do. His car was completely totaled again and Rebecca's body was still down there. It would be impossible for them not to connect her death to him when they found her, so it would be better just to turn himself in. Then maybe he could talk Joey into believing what he saw and then something could be done about it, or so he hoped.

He slipped into the station, looking around before limping back towards the offices, remembering the route all too well from his days of being hauled in to talk about his part in Tèa's death. He hung his head at the memory; glad that the few glimpses of his wife dead was all that he had. He didn't want to remember all of it if the rest of the memory was as bad as those glimpses. Yami shivered at the thought, looking up and shuffling to a stop when he felt stares on him.

His eyes widened as he realized that Joey wasn't the only one on duty as he had previously thought, his flight instinct kicking in. Yami swayed in place, not willing to run away just now. He had something to do here, even if the audience was bigger than he thought it would be. Yami took a deep breath and limped a few more strides forward, walking up to Joey and keeping his eyes on the ground.

"Yami! Where have you been, bud, we've been looking all over for you?"

"Yami?" He flinched at the sound of Yugi's voice, looking away as the reaper peeked out of one of the offices. He had forgotten that Yugi would be here.

He cleared his throat, glancing up at Joey before he went back to staring at the floor. It was the safer choice, he didn't have to see their reactions then. "I…I just came to tell you that Rebecca Hawkins'…body…is lying near my car. Off of Holloway Road."

There were a few gasps from the officers, Yami looking up as he felt someone run into him, surprised to find that Yugi was holding him close. He struggled for a moment before giving in, slumping against Yugi and allowing himself to feel the calm that always came from him being close to the reaper. "It's alright, Yami, you can't save everyone."

"Yugi…I saw what it did…and Rebecca…"

"Yami Gardner." He froze at the unfamiliar voice, looking up and finding himself staring at a pale man in a trench coat. Yami tried to take a step back, but was unable to with the way that Yugi was hanging onto him. The man stared at him with bright eyes before jerking his head to the back room. "Take him away."

"No." Yugi tightened his hold. "He didn't do anything!"

"And what do you know about him? From your own admission, Mr. Mutou, you only met him yesterday." The man grinned up at Yami. "What do you really know about your charming host?"

"Enough to know that-"

"This is an investigation, Mr. Mutou. I can have you locked up if you continue to impede." Yugi stared at the man before letting go of Yami, but still standing close. The man smiled and nodded, waving to two of the officers standing by.

Yami shivered as the pulled his arms forward, securing a pair of handcuffs around his wrists before dragging him toward the back room. He swallowed harshly and twisted to see Yugi, watching as Mai escorted the reaper and Serenity out of the station, finding it unlikely that Yugi heard anything that Mai said. He met Yugi's eyes for a moment before jerking his gaze away.

Yugi could find someone better than an emotionally scarred human to be his balance. The reaper would be better off without him around anyway. But that didn't stop him from watching Yugi until the reaper was out of his sight.

Yami grunted in pain as the man jerked his head back around, glaring at him before motioning for the officers to take him into the small interrogation room. He was surprised when the man grabbed his bound hands, tugging him into the room before slamming the door in the faces of the officers. He shivered as he looked up at his captor, the man regarding him in disgust before Yami was shoved towards the chair at the other end of the table. "Sit."

He stared at the man, the gesture to sit being repeated twice before he cautiously sunk into the chair, trying to shift so he was hidden from the man's sight. Yami had barely settled down when the door to the room burst open, Joey stumbling in with a frown. "What the hell do you think you are doing?"

"Questioning a suspect, Officer Wheeler. I thought you would have been able to figure that out."

"Yami has done nothing to-"

"He had admitted himself that Rebecca Hawkins was killed and his own car is close by." The man narrowed his eyes. "Do you not think that's a bit odd?"

"We've questioned him before and-"

"Then you're obviously not asking the right questions!" The man turned to point at the door. "Get out."

"This is my station and you can't order me around."

"You are speaking to an agent of the United States government! This is your one chance to get the hell out of this room before you find yourself in cuffs for impeding this investigation. You choice, officer."

Joey glanced between Yami and the man, the former giving a little shake of his head. As much as he appreciated Joey's willingness to help him, he wouldn't ruin his friend's career over this. He looked over at the man, frowning as the agent slammed the door in Joey's face, taking a deep breath before turning to face Yami, a crazed smile crossing his face. "As I already know who you are, I think it's fair that you know me. I'm Agent Noa Kaiba of the FBI. I was called here because of the surprising amount of falsely labeled heart attack related deaths in the past five years. Something that you always seem to be connected to since they started with your wife, Tèa."

"I wouldn't have-"

"No. You don't speak until I'm done." Noa gave him a long glare before pulling out a chair, looking like he was going to sit down before stopping himself at the last minute. Yami saw the look of pain that ran across the agent's eyes before Noa was up and pacing again, wringing his hands. "I've been over the records and have found that all the usual causes of a heart attack aren't present, the heart just gives under extreme pressure which causes the arteries around them to burst. Twenty-seven recorded cases of this death, staring with Tèa and, I assume, ending with Rebecca. This can only mean the same thing. Do you have anything to say about this?"

Yami dropped his gaze to the table, the argument that he had planned dying the face of the evidence that he had been given. He hadn't been counting before; he had just known that people were dying. But, twenty-seven dead of the same cause? Twenty-seven people… Yami shook his head and slowly looked up at Noa, shivering. "I…I've seen something."

"What?"

"A figure…in a black cloak."

Noa snorted at that, rolling his eyes and leaning back again. "Who was it?"

Yami licked his lips, glancing around the room, wishing the handcuffs could come off so he could wrap his arms around himself. "Every time I've seen one of these killings….a figure in a black cloak…"

He yelped as Noa grabbed his chin, forcing him to look up into the agent's blue eyes. "Who was it?"

"Death." Yami was shoved back into the chair, sliding further down as Noa paced to the other side of the room with a laugh.

"When you've seen them? Are you finally coming to your senses?" Yami just shook his head, not understanding what the agent was getting at, something that Noa seemed to have prepared for. "There is no Death, Yami. That creature, that figure, is something you make up."

"No!"

"It's a figment of your imagination created to ease your conscious. Created by your twisted mind to satisfy your desire to kill and absolve you of your guilt at the same time!"

"NO!" Yami rocked back in his seat, almost tipping the chair over, but Noa was a step ahead of him, rushing over and pinning him to the chair, holding them both at an awkward angle.

"Tèa was first, she was the wife that you never wanted. You wanted to satisfy your libido and she wouldn't let you. You two were bound in holy matrimony and she held you to it." Yami just shook his head, clinging to an arm of the chair as he stared up at Noa, unable to speak a word. The agent plowed on, his blue eyes sparkling with sadistic glee. "You were the last one to see Tristan aside from his wife before he died, and you had known Joey for years. You knew that Joey didn't approve of the marriage, so you went out of your way to make sure that the marriage ended. And Rebecca…everyone knew you hated her. That newspaper article this morning was just enough to push you over the edge."

Noa paused at that, scowling in disgust before taking a step away, letting the chair thud back to all four legs. Yami trembled as he watched the agent pace the floor, not sure what he should think. What Noa was saying all made sense, horrific sense; but he didn't know if it was true. He couldn't think, his mind caught in a circular thought pattern, going from images of Rebecca's dead body to the evidence that Noa had against him, whimpering as he pressed back against the chair. He pressed the heels of his hands to his forehead, trying  to figure out someway that he would be proven innocent. He glanced up slowly as Noa laughed.

"There's no way out, Yami. The first step is to admit it to yourself. You killed those people, and you've got to be stopped before you kill more."

Yami stared at the agent, glancing at the door. He was the only one who could see that creature other than Yugi, but what if he was the one creating it? He had only started seeing it around recently, and only when someone was going to die. Was he becoming more aware of what he had done? Was that why he had blocked the memories of what had happened the night that Tèa had died, so that he could believe that he was innocent? And what about Yugi? Would he turn on the reaper next? Was this strange pull towards Yugi nothing more than his killing instinct or was it what the reaper had described to him?

He groaned and slumped forward, not sure what to think anymore, just focusing on the cool touch of the table. Yami blinked slowly, watching as Noa circled around the table, vaguely reminded of a shark. The agent repeated the move a few more times before stopping right in front of Yami and leaning over him. "So, what's the verdict?"

Yami licked his lips before closing his eyes. "Guilty."

* * *

Serenity walked out of the police station, brushing off a police officer that offered her a ride back to her house, the man probably trying to help her out on Joey's orders. She gave him a smile, quietly thanking him for his offer before walking down the steps and onto the sidewalk, taking a deep breath. It was morning already, most of their night spent cramped in the police station as the officers had looked for Yami and then as Noa had told his story. And what a story it was.

She rubbed her arms, trying to calm herself. She trusted her big brother when it came to the events of that night, Joey had been the one to find Yami and Tèa, Noa had only read the reports. And, with everyone afraid over all of these new deaths, it was only expected that they would suspect Yami. Still, there had to be a solution. If only she could get to two or three of the bodies to look deeper than just a heart attack, to look for an actual medical condition. Of course, she would have to ask for help from some of the more senior doctors, but she was sure that she would find something at least.

"It's not true, you know." Serenity turned around as Yugi spoke, watching him walk down the stairs, seeming to be completely exhausted. "It's just that… I can tell it's not true. He wouldn't have killed her."

"I know, Yugi. Joey told me the story before I even came here. That's just paranoia talking." She bit her lip, glancing around at the nearly empty street before turning to walk back to where she had left her car, freezing when she realized that Yugi had no way back to Yami's house. She turned around, watching Yugi lean against the police station wall. "Hey, you need a ride somewhere?"

Yugi was slow to respond, staring at the ground for a long minute before nodding slowly, looking back up at her. "Yami's house. I just want to…"

"You look like you need some sleep."

Yugi seemed surprised by her inference, giving her a relieved smile before nodding. "Yeah, sleep."

He fell into step behind her, the two quickly walking the block back to the café that they had been at just hours before, easily finding the small car. Serenity slid into the driver's seat, her eyes widening as she stared at Yami's car that was parked right across from them. Yugi's stuff was still in there since the man had only retrieved it this morning. She turned to look at him, Yugi seeming to realize this as well before he slumped with a groan. "I'll just throw these into the wash or something. I'm sure Yami wouldn't mind."

The smile that appeared on Yugi's face was gone in a second, the man turning to look out the window and falling silent. Serenity let him think, turning on the car and pulling out into the deserted street before heading out for where Yami lived, her mind still churning over what Noa had told them.

She didn't know about the pocket knife, that was the one thing that Joey had never mentioned to her, or maybe it had already been deemed unimportant. But from the few months she had lived in town, she knew that Yami was the one who kept the books in repair at the library. She had seen him using a knife, presumably a second one, to work and he had seemed very skilled. Serenity shivered at the thought of that knife cutting through Tèa's skin to carve the number onto her forehead. But she just couldn't imagine Yami doing it.

To her, Yami was the jumpy, quiet man who ran the library. It was hard to encourage him into a long conversation, but she knew enough to leave him alone. He was often melancholy, but that was probably because of what happened to his wife and repeated sessions of failing to dredge up the memory of that night. All of the people that she knew thought Yami was just a harmless man, unless the subject of the deaths was brought up, and then he would be the number one suspect.

Her hands twisted on the steering wheel, Serenity glaring ahead of her. Fairwater's narrow-mindedness was getting annoying; first with Yami and then with Vivian.

She sat up straight at the thought of Vivian, ignoring Yugi's shocked look. She had completely forgotten about the woman with all of this going on. Serenity looked up into her rearview mirror, smiling to herself when she saw that her bag was still it the back. Before she had gone home the night before, she had been told to be ready to visit the Wong residence again, in case Doctor Sanders was called to help with the recent deaths. But after Tristan's death, she had been given the day off. It was only right to pay Vivian a visit to make sure that she was holding up, maybe look at the cut and bruises again.

Of course, the sensible thing to do would be to go back home and figure out what to do now that Tristan was gone. There were a lot of things that she had to consider, like the house, things that she didn't feel quite up to thinking about right now. Now she had jobs that could distract her from the fact that she would have to go home and that Tristan was never coming back, and she would take that over sitting in her house crying. She just needed to distract herself until she was exhausted so she could just sleep. Maybe it would be better in a week or so. Until then, she didn't want to have to handle anything.

Serenity noticed that Yugi flinched away from the window as they passed Holloway Road, taking the time to glance over at the trucks and ambulance that were working there, trying to get the accident cleared before people started waking up. Thankfully, with Rebecca dead, the news that Yami had been the one to cause this would wait a while before getting out. Immediately afterward she felt guilty for the thought; Rebecca had just been doing her job, although she seemed to enjoy tarnishing Yami's reputation.

They drove on in silence until Serenity pulled into Yami's neighborhood, Yugi perking up at that and relaxing a bit in his seat. A moment later he was turning around to peer into the backseat, starting at something he saw there before turning back around, a relieved smile on his face.

"Yugi?"

"Sorry, didn't expect Tristan to be back there."

Serenity blinked at that, belatedly remembering that Yugi had acted like he had seen Tristan at the café. She had just thought that he was following Yami's lead before. "You can see him too?"

"Yeah." Yugi sighed and slumped in his seat, giving an exhausted laugh. "I've been able to see them for a…a long, long while."

"You've just been able to see them or…"

"There was a death in my family, a horrible accident." Yugi swallowed, turning to look back out the window before giving a long sigh. "I could see them since then."

Serenity shook her head. "It always seems to be accidents."

She turned the car into Yami's driveway, Yugi thanking her before clambering out, pausing to look back into the backseat again, smiling as he looked at her. "Tristan will look after you, so you might feel him hanging around a while."

"This isn't going to help me get over him."

"I know." Yugi nodded slowly. "I know, but think of it as a chance that few other people can get."

He shut the door before backing away with a wave, shoving his hands into his pockets as he walked towards the house. Serenity stared after him for a moment before backing the car out of the driveway and continuing through the neighborhood. From here, it was only a few minutes to the old hospital and the Wong's home, the thought of the creepy place making her shiver. It was no wonder that Vivian was a bit unstable; living in that atmosphere for so long would have driven anyone crazy.

Serenity twitched at the cold touch and light pressure on her shoulder, hesitating a moment before tipped her head to the side to rest her cheek against Tristan's hand, thanking him for the support. His presence might not help her get over the fact that he was gone, but she didn't regret the fact that he had stayed for her. It was just a bit better than just having him gone completely. That was one other thing about Tristan being dead that she still had yet to grasp fully.

She turned onto the winding side road that would lead to the Wong's house, hunching forward as the overgrown trees on either side of the road blocked out the sun, Serenity getting glimpses of the old hospital the closer she got to the house. She swallowed nervously, looking up at the sign as she passed under it before inching the car up the drive, stopping just out of the line of sight from the house and turning the car off. She turned to grab her bag, searching through it to get the supplies that she needed before carefully opening the door to the car and slipping out. She shut the door with equal care and dropped into a crouch, sneaking along behind a bush until she could see the front door.

The door opened as she was planning a way to get across the lawn and into the house, the memory of Mrs. Wong's reception to her all too fresh in her mind. Serenity gasped and ducked further behind the bush, peering out around the side, the elderly woman moving towards the side of the house with a bucket. Serenity remained in her place long enough to see that Mrs. Wong had disappeared from sight before looking back at the open door and deciding to chance it.

She stood up from her crouch, doing a quick double check of the things in her pockets before stepping out and walking quickly across the lawn. She managed to make it to the porch before she felt Tristan grabbing at her and trying to pull her back. Serenity shoved him away, glancing around before glaring at the air behind her. "Tristan, this needs to happen! What are you doing?"

There was no reply, Serenity wishing that she could hear Tristan like Yami and Yugi could. She shook her head and snuck into the house, holding her breath for a moment before peeking into the sitting room, frowning when Vivian wasn't there. She looked back at the door, debating her choices. She could just shout for Vivian, but this would end it all too quickly. Or she could search the house as fast as he could until she found her. Settling on the second option, Serenity began climbing the stairs, daring to speak the woman's name in a low voice. "Vivian? Vivian are you here?"

"Doctor Taylor?" Serenity jumped at the quavering voice from above her, smiling as she spotted Vivian clutching a robe close to her. Vivian attempted to return the smile before motioning for Serenity to come up the stairs, quickly shoving her into a small room at the end of the hall.

Serenity got a glimpse of her unbound hand and fresh bruises along Vivian's arms to match the fading ones around her neck, shaking her head in disgust. "It's your mother doing this to you, isn't it?"

Vivian reached up to touch her neck before shaking her head, going to sit on her bed as tears formed in her eyes. "You don't understand. I…Mother hasn't been happy since Father died." Vivian's gaze strayed up to the portrait of the stern man that was hung over her bed before swinging over to the urn that was perched on a pile of books. "He killed himself after the trial; he said that I was evil like Johnny. He didn't understand."

"Your first love is always the hardest."

"Mother makes me keep his ashes in the room." Serenity's mouth dropped open in shock, turning to stare at the urn. So that's what it was, her stomach rolled. Who would ask that of their own daughter? Vivian seemed to sense her unease, making a small sound of distress before standing up and going to the urn. Serenity relaxed a bit as the container was placed in the closet. Vivian turned around once her task was done, rubbing her arms. "Am…am I evil?"

"Of course not." Serenity pulled her into a hug.

"T-they all say I am." She could feel Vivian trembling in her arms as the woman tried not to cry, Serenity rubbing her hand up and down Vivian's back. "They think I am. I can see it in their eyes."

"They don't know the whole story. If you could just go out there-"

"Mother will never let me go out." Vivian pulled away, wiping the tears from her face. "So I stay inside, and I read what they think about me."

"You…read…"

Vivian nodded, glancing around before taking her hand. "Follow me to Mother's room and I'll show you."

Serenity allowed herself to be pulled from the small room, the two of them crossing the upper landing quietly. She was ushered into a slightly larger room, Vivian partially shutting the door before scuttling over to the bed and yanking out a trunk that was hidden under it. She sat on the floor, nervously pushing the trunk over to Serenity before she got up and paced back to the door.

Serenity hesitated for a moment before opening the trunk up, her eyes widening at the yellowed newspapers that were neatly stacked inside. She carefully pulled them out one by one, skimming over the articles and staring at the pictures of Jonny Bartlett and fifteen-year-old Vivian, a sad smile crossing her face. Of course Vivian would think that the world hated her when faced with this everyday. She was willing to bet that Mrs. Wong didn't even own a television, so Vivian was unaware that she had been forgotten and that her infamous boyfriend was the one that everyone remembered.

She sighed and packed the papers back in their trunk, sighing and pushing it back under the bed. "This isn't you anymore, Vivian. You've changed."

Vivian looked away from her guard at the door, nodding her head and wiping away the tears that had formed. "It…It was Johnny, he just went crazy one day. I couldn't stop him. I thought that he was going to kill me next so I went along with it."

"Hey." Serenity stood up, hugging Vivian again. "It's alright. I understand. It wasn't the right choice but it was probably your only choice, and the rest of the world never got that. I'm sure that they would understand now."

Vivian gave a slow nod, both of them tensing as they heard the door slam shut. Serenity let out a curse, covering her mouth up in the next moment before looking down at Vivian. Mrs. Wong had come back inside, and they were both in her room.

Vivian was the first to act, grabbing Serenity's arm and dragging her to the old wardrobe in the room, whispering quickly. "I'll distract her. I'll take her to the kitchen and then you sneak out."

"Thank you." Vivian shut the wardrobe doors, Serenity pressing herself up against the back of the wardrobe and going still, listening as Vivian opened the door only to hear a squeak from the girl.

"What are you doing in my room?"

"I…I thought I heard a noise." There was silence for a moment. "I'll fix you some coffee mother."

Serenity heard Vivian walk out; holding her breath as she listened to Mrs. Wong walking around the room, sure that she was going to be caught at any moment. Then, the elderly woman walked out of the room, Serenity waiting until she heard the door close again to let out a slow breath, stepping away from the back of the wardrobe and beginning to open the door.

As the light came into the wardrobe she spotted something hanging off the edge of the shelf above her head, Serenity glancing at the door before carefully reaching up to pull the object down, her eyes widening as she stared at the pocket knife in her hands, her gaze dropping to the name carefully written in permanent marker near the base. Yami. Taking a deep breath, she flipped the blade open, staring at the red stain on the end of the blade, quickly snapping it back in before replacing the knife on the shelf. Her stomach rolled, Serenity placing a hand over her mouth. She needed to get out of here.

She snuck out of the room and onto the landing, nearly crawling down the stairs as she listened to the muffled conversation from the kitchen. Serenity glanced at the front door, relieved that it wasn't completely shut, meaning that she would have a better time sneaking out. She glanced back at the kitchen, wincing at the sound of a mug shattering against tile before she made her move, walking quickly towards the door.

As she was easing the heavy old door open, she felt something pushing at her, urging her to get out. Serenity looked over her shoulder, moving again after one final shove from Tristan. She couldn't see or hear her husband's ghost, but she was willing to trust him if he was that desperate to get her out of the house. Serenity broke into a run as she crossed the yard, desperate to get to her car and drive back to Yami to tell him the good news.

She slid easily behind the wheel of her car, starting it up and putting it in reverse before the car shook from the force of something landing on it. Serenity frowned and glanced at the hood before shrugging and backing down the driveway, not seeing the mangled ghost of her husband sliding off the hood of the car.

* * *

Duke walked through the police station, avoiding the people rushing around out of habit. He paused in the center of the room to look back over his shoulder, shifting nervously before walking further back. He had promised Tomoya that he would find and look after Yami if the kid watched over the reaper for him. It was a fair trade off, one that kept the reaper under their supervision. But it still would have been easier if Solomon was still around.

At the thought of the old miner, Duke felt tears prick at his eyes, rubbing them away before he remembered that they were just the memory of tears. He hadn't been able to cry since the sixties when he had died. Still, being a ghost didn't mean that he couldn't mourn. The old miner had been around for as long as he could remember, hanging around Yami to keep the man from doing anything stupid. Duke had started watching after Yami with Solomon, but it had always been with Solomon around. It was strange to have to do this on his own.

It had to be worse for Tomoya; the kid had looked up to Solomon, taken his cues from Solomon instead of Duke. But, then again, Duke was still too 'young' to be calm, still too easily driven to anger or fear, but at least he knew his own flaws.

Still, just because Solomon was gone didn't mean that they just stopped looking after Yami; after all, Solomon had given up his life so that they could get the human out of danger. And Yami needed them more than ever now, he was trapped in this place again with the news spreading that he had killed Rebecca Hawkins. Having met the girl once, Duke could honestly say that he wasn't impressed, but he knew that Yami would never kill her, no matter what she said or did to him.

Duke slipped through the small office space back towards the holding cells, checking in the interrogation room for a moment. If he stalled for time long enough, Tomoya would come back here with the reaper. And, as much as he hated to admit it, the reaper seemed to be good for Yami. With the three of them, they could spring Yami from jail, and then Duke would demand that the reaper take Yami somewhere where he wouldn't get caught. It would be the end of them being able to be around Yami, but it was for his own good.

The interrogation room was empty, not that Duke found that surprising. Yami had been hauled back here hours ago; they had probably gotten what they had needed. But why wasn't he out in the lobby then? They couldn't possibly have enough evidence against Yami this time. He hurried his walk, passing through walls and people to go faster, aiming for the cells, the only other place Yami would be.

Duke came to a surprised stop when he saw two people in the cell area, staring at the solid metal doors of the cells before walking forward, brought to a stop again as the one man who was peering into a cell started talking. "There he goes. He's finally stopped arguing with himself and accepted the truth."

"Agent Kaiba?"

"Of course, some parts of his conscious will struggle against it, but we have him now. He'll admit to the truth."

The cop looked nervous, shifting and staring at the folder that he held in his hand. "We don't have enough evidence to bring him to court." Duke saw the man at the door stiffen before turning to look at the cop, unnerved by the half-crazed smile that was directed at the cop. To his credit, the cop only took a step back, continuing. "Even with his testimony there are too many holes and guesses in this to ever make a case."

"Doesn't matter."

"Huh?"

"I said it doesn't matter." Agent Kaiba stood up straight, taking a pair of black gloves from his pocket and pulling them on carefully, making sure that the fabric rested evenly between his fingers. "I don't expect this case to reach court. With his mental state, I expect him to commit suicide in a few days if not hours."

The cop blanched and walked quickly away, probably to report what the agent had just said to Joey. The agent seemed to realize this too, frowning and drawing his trench coat closer to him. "They always do!"

Then he was gone, striding out into another part of the police department, ignoring where Duke stood frozen in the middle of the hallway. The ghost shook his head before rushing to the cell door, hesitating before walking through the door, his gaze dropping to where Yami sat on one of the bottom bunks.

To put it nicely, Yami looked like hell.

His clothes were rumpled and torn, probably from the crash earlier the night before and there were patches of blood still on his skin. Yami's hair was messed up more than usual, even the spikes that he kept it in drooping and beginning to come apart, strands of hair falling to the sides and over his face. There were dark circles under Yami's eyes, just accenting the empty look in them.

Worried, Duke knelt down in front of Yami and reached out to put a hand on his shoulder. "Yami? Yami, are you still in there?" When his friend didn't respond, Duke gave him a shake. "This isn't funny, Yami! We need to get you out of here before they do something. You may trust Joey and the others, but I don't trust this agent guy they've got lurking around.

"I'll help you get out, but I'm not going to carry you. We'll get you back home long enough to pack some stuff and then we'll ship you off with that reaper. I know he's not the best choice, but if anyone can keep you safe it's the reapers." Duke rocked back, frowning as Yami continued to stare at him. No, through him. He reached up to wave a hand in Yami's face, surprised when his friend didn't blink. "Yami?"

"Yami!" The door to the cell was thrown open, Joey Wheeler rushing in and kneeling halfway through Duke. Annoyed, the ghost shifted a bit to the right, allowing Joey to settle in front of Yami. "Listen, bud, we need to get you out of here. There's no case on you and the Rebecca thing is cleared. She managed to get a good distance from your car. It's just like Tèa all over again, there's no evidence on you."

Duke saw Yami's eyes widen at the mention of Tèa, Joey seeming to realize his mistake a moment later. "Shit. Sorry, man. I didn't mean to…but… Damn it all, we have to get you out of here; the government has the wrong man. All of the officers in the station will defend you if it ever gets to a trial… But they're saying that they expect you to suicide and…"

Joey seemed to get his first real look at Yami, cursing and standing up, backing up until he hit the two bunks on the other side of the room. "You can't be really… No, not you. You can't let them win like this."

Yami didn't look up, continuing to stare off at that one point in the distance. Duke growled to himself and turned away. It looked like that government agent had won, Yami was giving up. Duke wanted to find that man again and rip him to pieces, annoyed that as a ghost he could punch the man and it would only feel like a light touch. He turned to kick the wall, not caring that his foot went through it; it was the action itself that counted.

Duke spun back around at a grunt, staring at Yami as he sat completely still, Joey's arm still extended from the punch that he had landed on Yami's chest. The blonde cop let out a groan before falling to his knees on the floor, staring over at his friend. "Snap out of it, bud, you can't just give up like this. I thought you were doing much better than this. Damn it, Yami, as soon as Mai caves I was going to have you be the best man at my wedding."

Yami didn't respond, Joey finally giving up and standing up with a long sigh before shuffling back towards the door, walking out of the cell and slamming the door behind him. Duke took the freed space in the middle of the room, shuffling into place and staring down at Yami.

He would just have to stay here then and stop Yami from doing anything stupid. That was easy enough. Duke glanced around the room before jumping up onto the top bunk of the two beds opposite from where Yami sat, leaning forward and settling down for a long watch.


	10. Desperate Measures

** Chapter Nine: Desperate Measures **

Yugi stood at the front door of Yami's house, watching Serenity drive off. He sighed and shoved his hands into his pockets, feeling his cell phone resting in one of them. Yugi flinched as he realized that he had yet to call Seto. Knowing his boss, Seto would be angry at this slight but, in Yugi's defense, he had a lot on his mind. The reaper ran a hand through his hair before shaking his head. He had to stick to his priorities, he would clean his clothes and shower before talking to Seto and, even then, he would be searching for a way to piece together his balance's past. It would have been easier just to ask Yami, but he didn't have that time.

The soft click of a lock made Yugi look up, the reaper smiling as he reached out to turn the handle, opening the door to reveal Tomoya standing on the other side. The ghost gave him a nervous smile before gesturing for him to come in. "I really hope that Yami wouldn't mind this."

"You and me both." Yugi tried to laugh, but the sound just died in his throat. He looked away from the ghost, shivering as Tomoya passed through him partially to get through the door.

"I'm just going to go back to the police station. I'm worried about Yami."

"Yeah, I'll just be…here…"

Yugi jumped as a cold hand landed on his shoulder, Tomoya giving him a sympathetic look. "Everything will turn out alright. I'll come back later to tell you how he's doing."

"Thanks." The ghost nodded before walking out the door, Yugi staring at him before shutting the door and turning to look at the interior of the house, breathing a long sigh. As much as he wanted to get to the bottom of this, he needed to be in shape. Unlike the ghosts, he had a physical form that he had to keep up. It was either that or allow himself to dissolve into what his soul really looked like after two hundred forty-seven thousand years. Yugi flinched at that thought, shaking his head. That was one form that he didn't want to return to for a long while.

With a long sigh, he trudged towards the upstairs hall, hoping that he wasn't assuming too much by allowing himself this. But, then again, he could always apologize to Yami later.

He reached the linen closet with few mishaps, claiming an old beach towel for himself before stripping and wrapping the towel around his waist and wandering down to where the washer and dryer were. It took little time for him to get his clothes going and for him to trudge back upstairs and start a shower. Yugi gloried in the feeling of warm water running down his skin, allowing himself a single moment of relaxation before he forced himself onward. What was supposed to be a relaxing vacation was turning into anything but.

Then again, there was the surprising bonus of having found his balance nearly as soon as he entered this town. Yugi slumped back against the tiles with a goofy grin on his face, allowing himself to actually think of Yami as that instead of pushing the thought to the side. It was good to have a balance, good to actually be able to not worry about if he was going insane. And it just felt right; no wonder all of his friends had clung to theirs so jealously for the first few years with them.

Of course, he had know what that had felt like for a while himself with Mana. Yugi shivered at the memory of his friend, wrapping his arms around himself and digging his nails into his skin to keep from succumbing to the memories. He didn't want to fall back into his fear at the moment, he wanted to enjoy the fact that he had found Yami at all, not have the memories of what happened to Mana circling around in his head. He was in a place where his balance could be killed, something that was never supposed to happen to them. Balances were supposed to live to a good old age and then have their souls taken by their partners to become something like a reaper, but without the powers that came with it.

Yugi bit his lip before pushing away from the wall, standing fully under the spray of water again. At least he knew where Yami was now, that was enough to calm him. As long as he knew where Yami was, he would be alright.

He scrubbed at his hair, rising the shampoo out before turning off the water, stepping out of the shower to towel off, spending some time to make sure that his hair was dry enough not to damage the phone before wandering out of the bathroom with the towel wrapped around his waist again.

Yugi checked on his laundry, taking his phone from where he had left it on top of the machine and picking up his scythe, absently turning the pen-sized stick in his fingers as he dialed Seto's number. His boss immediately answered, and started shouting at him. "It's about time, Yugi! I had to call Ryou to even know that you were alive!"

"What did he tell you?"

"Everything that you told him; how these people die, the balance that died and your stroke of bad luck." Yugi flinched at that, hearing Seto sigh over the phone. "Listen, Yugi, I don't like how much they kept from us. I'm tempted to call you back and just let those reapers deal with it."

"No!" Yugi blushed at his outburst, beginning to pace to work off some of his energy. "I can handle it now. I've got a lead and I know what the creature looks like."

"Creature?"

"It's another rogue, Seto. And who is the best at catching rogues?"

He heard Seto grumble over the line, bending over to move his clothes from the washer to the dryer as he waited for his boss to speak. He heard Seto sigh, the sound long and drawn out. "You sure it's a rogue?"

Yugi bit his lip, thinking back to his conversation with Solomon. It hadn't felt exactly like a reaper, nor had it felt exactly like a human or a ghost. But he knew that behavior well enough from his years of hunting down the rogues. "Scythe and everything, and it would make sense about the balance dying. A reaper can kill anything."

"Just because we can doesn't mean we should."

"Right." Yugi nodded and rubbed a hand over his face, watching his clothes spin. "But the fact that these reapers here let this go on for so long."

"Don't worry, I'm on it already. The higher ups are already shifting stuff around. What did you say that the two who brought you in were?"

"Alister and Raphael."

The line went quiet for a moment, Yugi looking away from the dryer to stare at the wall. He thought he heard a shuddering breath from Seto, his boss speaking before he could question him. "Get out of there, Yugi."

"What?" He jumped as the buzzer went off, telling him that he clothes were dry. Yugi propped the phone on his shoulder, opening the dryer and getting dressed. "Seto, talk to me. What's going on?"

"Reports were given out, but you were out of the country so I didn't think about it. Stupid." Seto cursed, Yugi hearing Kisara's gasp of surprise from the other end of the line.

"What?"

"Yugi, there weren't any reapers assigned to the area that you were in, not after Maximillion Pegasus." Yugi stopped getting dressed, one foot in the leg of his pants. "They pulled all reapers out after he went rogue and they had to hunt him down."

"H-how do you…"

"After Ryou talked to me I asked for more information about this case and I was finally given it by the head of the reapers over there. The team that we assumed would be meeting you has been dead since they tried to stop Maximillion, he took them all down before he finally went to the afterlife himself."

"So they…" Yugi jerked suddenly, stumbling back against the dryer as he tried to calm his racing heart. "Would someone named Noa Kaiba be working for them too?"

"No. That's not one of their aliases."

Yugi heaved a sigh of relief, running a hand over his face. At least Noa was just a human that was interfering, not another rogue reaper. That made three that he would have to deal with just in one town, and that was going to be hard if he wanted to protect Yami from the authorities. His had tightened on his scythe. "I have a lot of hunting to do."

"It seems that you do. I'm sure I don't have to tell you to be careful."

"No." Yugi put the phone down for a moment, pulling his shirt over his head before settling it, reaching for the phone again. "I'm only worried about what they are doing killing all of these people."

"What if they're not the ones?"

Yugi froze, staring at the wall in front of him. "That's impossible."

"Yugi, you and I are probably the only people who know that the higher ups have almost no control over the afterlife, they just can tell us which souls are going to get stuck and when. There are many things that they don't know."

"Shit." Seto didn't say anything on the other line, Yugi trembling as he tried to figure out what he should do next.

The smart thing to do would be to go after the rogue reaper that was killing these people, but he didn't know where that reaper was. So that left Alister and Raphael, also unknowns, but he could easily find them. He was sure that they were lurking out the outskirts of town, waiting for him to stumble out. All he had to do was walk out there and face them. But that would leave Yami in danger; he couldn't just leave his balance to fend for himself, not with three rogue reapers out. The ghosts would help, but it wouldn't be enough.

He had to get Yami somewhere safe, but that wasn't anywhere here. Unless he could convince the ghosts in the cemetery to hide Yami for him. He was sure that they would grant him that one request. And the reapers would be reluctant to enter the cemetery, even without the ghosts of all of the people that they had killed lingering there. Yugi nodded to himself, straightening up. He would go and find Yami, and then he would hide his balance before facing the rogue reapers. He didn't want a repeat of what had happened to Mana, because he might not come out of that encounter sane.

"Yugi?"

"Leave this to me, Seto; I'll take care of it."

"And your balance?"

"Don't worry about him. That's my business." Yugi strengthened his grip on the scythe. "But you can tell the higher ups that-AH!"

He pitched forward, falling to the floor. The cell phone skittered out of his hand, Yugi staring at it blankly as he hit the floor seconds after it, barely feeling the impact. His mind was focused far away on the faint beat of a heart, getting slower as time when on. Yugi let out a whimper, one hand reaching out like he could help the dying person only to stop as the heart stopped beating. He felt like something had snapped in him, Yugi unaware that he had screamed until the sound echoed back on him.

Yugi pushed himself off the floor, feeling his arms wobble a bit, but he forced himself onward, the grip on his scythe never loosening. He felt tears running down his cheeks as he went to pick up the phone, listening to Seto shout at him for a moment before speaking, barely recognizing his own voice. "They killed him. Those bastards killed him!"

"Yugi?" He hung up the phone, shoving it into his pocket and striding towards the door, his eyes narrowed. He would make them pay.

* * *

Yami didn't know how long he had sat there staring at the wall, coming back to himself as someone else entered the room. He vaguely remembered Joey coming to talk to him before, but he couldn't remember any of the conversation, it was lost in the endless loop of thought that he was stuck in. How could they let someone in to see him when he had killed twenty-seven people?

"Just remember, shout if you need me."

"Yes." So they had let Serenity in. Yami didn't bother to look up, shifting his gaze to the floor before settling back down, his head dropping until his chin rested on his chest. Why couldn't they just leave him alone? They thought that they were helping, but they didn't know the truth.

He had killed Tèa.

He had killed those twenty-seven people.

That rogue reaper was somehow connected to him.

Yami shivered and curled into himself. He didn't know how or why, but that creature was following him. Maybe it was a part of him; maybe it wasn't, but that fact didn't matter right now. What did was the fact that it was killing people, killing people that he had been in contact with. Maybe it was his own killing instinct that was forcing the reaper to do this. Maybe he had accidentally created the reaper in his bouts of anger, twisting some poor soul through some means that he didn't remember. The accident had to have wiped that out to.

The hows and the whys didn't matter though, all that mattered was the fact that all these people were dead, and it was his fault.

"Yami?" He felt a hand on his shoulder, tipping his head a bit so he could see Serenity. It was the only movement that he would allow himself. Serenity seemed to take that as an invitation, smiling before kneeling on the floor of the cell, her other hand resting on his free shoulder. "Listen Yami, I found your knife, the one that you lost that night. Mrs. Wong has it, she keeps it in her closet and there's still blood on it. All I have to do is tell Joey and then you're free."

He stared at her for a moment before closing his eyes. It didn't matter.

She gave him a gentle shake, a concerned sound escaping from her before she shook him harder. "Yami? Did you hear me?"

He leaned back, just far enough that he hands slid from his shoulders. Yami didn't open his eyes to see what his move had done, just listening as she gasped and then sat back, the bunk beds across from him rattling as she leaned on them. "I talked to Joey on the way in, but I didn't tell him about the knife, I wanted you to know first…to see if you knew anything else. He said that they had no evidence to keep you in here, but you weren't moving. I could open the door and let you walk out right now."

"No!" He opened his eyes, staring at her before shivering. Yami shifted on the bed, flopping onto his side before rolling to face the wall, wrapping his arms around himself. "I can't."

"What do you mean you can't? You can't stay here, there's no case."

"I can't be let out, not if I want people to live."

"Yami?"

"I've seen the thing that's killed them, and I'm controlling it."

He yelped as he was pulled onto his back, Serenity looming over him with a frown. "What are you talking about?"

Yami stared at her licking his lips before speaking slowly. "I see it, the thing that kills people. It's a figure dressed in a cowl and it has a scythe. It reaches into their chest and squeezes their heart until it stops. And I make it do it."

"That's impossible."

"It's true."

Serenity huffed before giving him a rough shake. "It's not and you know it."

"I killed them all. I was the one who killed Tèa." His eyes widened as Serenity slapped him, the red head taking a step away and beginning to pace up and down the small room as she raged.

"You're just going to let them convince you of that? You're acting like you're the only person who was lost someone here? Tèa was five years ago, Yami, but I lost Tristan today and you don't see me moping around. We have something to do and we can't just stop to throw ourselves a pity party. Now what are we going to do?"

Yami stared at her before sitting up slowly, wrapping his arms around himself again. "I don't want anyone else to die. I want this all to stop." He wanted Yugi close to him again, his body and mind already craving the calm that came with the reaper's presence. Yami shook his head before standing up, smiling at Serenity. "Thanks."

She nodded before flinging herself forward into his arms, Yami catching her awkwardly as she hugged him. He smiled before allowed himself to relax, wrapping his arms around Serenity with a sigh of relief. A flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye made him turn his head, smiling back at where Duke and Tomoya stood. He frowned a moment later, pulling away from Serenity. "Where's Yugi?"

"Oh," she paused to push some hair out of her face, "I took him back to your house. He looked like he needed sleep."

Yami glanced back at the ghosts, Tomoya blushing and giving a shrug. So the ghost had let Yugi back inside, Yami would have to thank him for that later. As long as Yugi was alright, he could relax. Yami pulled back away from Serenity, meeting her eyes and smiling. His gaze flicked up towards her forehead, his mouth falling open in shock.

The number forty-one was glowing in her forehead, carved in like the others.

He felt Serenity shake him, his gaze going towards the cell door as he felt a shiver go up his spine. "Yami? Yami, what's wrong?"

"Get down!" He pushed Serenity to the ground, ducking himself as the rogue reaper pushed through the door and into the room, missing them both and disappearing into the back wall. In a moment, Tomoya and Duke were after it, Yami hearing them both shout before they disappeared into the wall.

He reached down to help Serenity up, holding her close as he backed towards the door, listening to the shouts of the two ghosts as they fought the creature. Yami took a deep breath before pushing Serenity towards the door. "Call for the deputy, tell him that we're taking Joey up on his offer. We'll go out the back."

"Yami?"

"Listen Serenity, you need to trust me and do what I say." He looked at her, hating that she was so scared. It didn't help that she couldn't see the creature coming, essentially blind to her demise. And he would have to be the one to keep her safe. With his track record, he wouldn't quite trust him either. Yami swallowed and pulled her into a quick hug, hoping that the contact would reassure her. "You're marked as the next victim. I'm going to try and save you, alright? But you have to listen to me."

She nodded, taking a deep breath before going over to the door and shouting for the deputy on duty. Yami lingered close to her, turning his head in the direction of the new shouts. At times, he could see Duke and Tomoya as they struggled to keep the rogue reaper from getting into the room, managing to keep it away from Serenity long enough for her to finish her conversation. She drew Yami's attention back to her by tugging on his sleeve. "He says that we can go now. They won't stop us."

Yami gave her a smile before nodding that she could open the door. Serenity peered out before padding out into the hallway, motioning for Yami to follow. He was about to follow the silent order when Tomoya stumbled back into the cell, adjusting his glasses with a nervous smile. Yami paused before taking a step towards the ghost. "Tomoya?"

"I think we got him Ya-AH!" Tomoya twitched as the curved blade of the scythe pushed through his head, Yami's stomach churning as he watched the blade slice through his friend. The reaper pushed through the wall, pulling his weapon out of Tomoya and instant later, the ghost slumping to the ground. Yami heard the reaper snarl before the ghost was flipped over, the reaper tearing at Tomoya's chest before pulling out a pulsing orb. Yami felt a lump form in his throat as he watched the reaper crush Tomoya's soul before he focused on Serenity.

He cursed as he allowed himself to be pulled from the cell, grabbing her arm and turning her down the hallway that led out through the back of the police station. Yami gave her a little shove, hoping that it would encourage her into a run, especially since that creature was still following them. Serenity shot a glare at him before hurrying up, the two of them dashing down the hall.

Yami panted for breath as they rounded a corner, slamming into Serenity as she came to a stop, her mouth hanging open in shock. He peeked around her, cursing again as he found himself staring at Noa. The agent dropped the cup he had been holding, ignoring the coffee that spilled on the floor as he fumbled to pull out his gun. Yami took a step backward, about to pull Serenity with him when he heard something slam into the wall behind him.

He turned, staring at the rogue reaper for a moment before Duke rushed forward. "You son of a bitch!"

Both the ghost and the reaper disappeared through the wall, Yami trying to follow their progress with his eyes and keep Serenity out of the reaper's way. He was surprised when she took one look back at him before bolting forward, rushing for Noa and grabbing onto his arm. "He's gone crazy. He threatened to kill me if I didn't help him escape."

Noa seemed at a loss for words at the moment, eventually pushing Serenity away and pointing his gun at Yami and narrowing his eyes. Yami sucked in a deep breath and held up his hands in surrender, wondering what Serenity was doing. He didn't have long to wait.

The agent had just set himself up for the shot when Serenity hit him over the head with a fire extinguisher, Noa shouting before dropping to the ground, the gun falling from his hand. Serenity threw the fire extinguisher to the side, quickly picking up the gun and passing it to Yami as he ran up, seeming to be glad to be rid of the thing. "I didn't hit him too hard, he could be up at any minute."

"Then we should leave." He took her sleeve, ready to escort her out when he saw Duke stumble out of a wall, the reaper right behind him.

In no time, the reaper had Duke pinned to the wall, the ghost struggling to get out of its grip. Yami's eyes widened before he turned, leveling the gun at the reaper and flicking the safety off. If he shot the reaper it wouldn't kill it, but it would distract it long enough for Duke to get away. He had already seen Solomon and Tomoya die for him.

"Don't! Just run!"

"I-"

"Run, Yami!" Duke arched up with a scream, Yami feeling his hands tremble as the reaper reached in to rip out the glowing orb, once again crushing it. Yami turned away before Duke hit the ground, grabbing Serenity's arm and hurrying her out of the building.

He let go of her as soon as they were out, the two of them running down the alley behind the police station. Yami put his other hand on the gun, looking around and trying to listen for the reaper. Hopefully he would hear it before he could see it. But that would mean nothing. All he could do was shoot at it and hope to distract it from Serenity while she ran, and he would be out of luck as soon as he ran out of bullets. He couldn't harm the creature, he couldn't even touch it, but it could kill him. The only things that were able to touch it were ghosts.

Yami slowed down at the thought, coming to a stop and staring at a wall as the thought. The ghosts were the only ones who could fight it, but he doubted that any of the ghosts up at the cemetery would bother to help him. They were all as scared of this thing as he was, and for a good reason. But he couldn't just let Serenity die, Joey would be shattered by her death and he wasn't sure that he could survive seeing another friend die. So that just left one person.

He took a shaky breath, ignoring Serenity's frantic motions for him to hurry up. Instead, he checked the clip in the gun, relieved to see that it was full. At least he would have a second chance at this, as if he missed. Yami closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before pressing the muzzle of the gun against his head. He tried to ignore Serenity's scream, focusing on taking deep breaths and pushing all of his regrets away.

He would never get the chance to be proven innocent.

He would never get the chance to actually live.

He would never get the chance to see if he and Yugi could become something beyond the pull of reaper and balance.

That last one was something that he regretted the most. There was something there beyond the bond, he could feel it, but he would never get to see what it could really become. Yami ducked his head, sucking in a quick breath through his teeth before counting down, trying not to think how much this would hurt.

"No!" The gun was ripped from his hand and thrown against a wall, Yami slamming into the wall right after it as Serenity pushed him back against it. "What do you think you are doing?"

"I can't protect you like this."

"Who said I need protecting?" She was trying to sound brave, Yami could see that. But he could also feel her trembling.

He sighed and slumped in her hold, looking away. "I can't touch it or fight it, I can't do anything. Only ghosts can and all of my friends are dead."

"W-what?"

"Solomon, Duke, Tomoya," Yami reached up to wipe a tear from his eye, "they all died protecting me and the rest are too cowardly to do anything. If I could just touch that thing, I would make sure to destroy it!"

Serenity hesitated for a moment before nodding, letting go of Yami but kicking the gun away. When he went after it, she put a hand on his shoulder, shaking her head. "There's another way, a way that I could bring you back."

Yami stared at her, Serenity seeming to take that as his answer. She grabbed his hand and began pulling him through the alleys, this time heading in the direction of the hospital. Yami's eyes widened at that, looking back at her. Serenity shook the hair out of her eyes before beginning to explain. "There are some amphibians and insects that let themselves freeze over the winter, they just stop living and freeze over. But then, in the spring, they thaw out and begin to function again. Humans can't quite work like that, but it would give you a window of opportunity.

"There's a freezer in the hospital that I can cool down quickly, quickly enough to have you freeze. The thing is, it'll preserve tissue for a while and I can bring you back. It's the brain that's the important bit. I can stick you in there and monitor you...but you can only have ten minutes."

"Ten?"

"Longer than that and I'm…I'm not sure that I can bring you back." Serenity gave him a guilty look over her shoulder before shaking her head. "Officially, you'll be brain dead. And, even if I bring you back, you might not survive for long or they'll be problems and-Are you sure there's no other way to do this?"

She stopped them, turning to look at him with tears rolling down her face. "Yami…please, is there another way to do this? Because I really…I don't want to die, Yami, but I don't want to help you die. You're my friend and…"

Yami glanced down the alley, seeing the hospital waiting on the other side of the street. He looked back in the direction that they had come from. The rogue reaper could be out there anywhere, searching for Serenity and they didn't even know if it could track her. This was their only shot at saving her. He swallowed before nodding, putting on a fake smile. "Let's do this, yeah?"

Serenity nodded, grabbing his hand and tugging him into the hospital, the two of them slipping through the doors and rushing through the halls.

Yami was shocked that the place was so empty, getting glimpses of the clouds just turning pink through some of the windows. Weird, it didn't feel like it had quite been a day since he had walked into the police station, but the hours had sped by. And he wouldn't even live to see the sunset. Yami looked away from the windows, concentrating on keeping up with Serenity as she led him through the corridors, turning and walking into the lab room.

His gaze was immediately drawn to the metal door in one wall, Yami glancing up at the temperature gage before walking towards it, peering in the small window to look at the metal shelves and the glass tubes that were placed inside. Yami turned around to look at Serenity, watching her mess with some of the vials and a needle, taking a step back to lean against the door.

He tried to convince himself that this was a better way; he would actually get a chance to come back for one. But he didn't like the idea of freezing slowly. There would be a window of time when he couldn't help Serenity if the reaper attacked her, and then he would really die. Yami sighed and closed his eyes. He would rather take this route that shooting himself in the head. And, hopefully, he would retain the sense to get away from the passage of light.

Serenity walked over to him, trying to smile as she took a piece of rubber tubing from one of the tables, carefully rolling up his sleeve before tying the tube onto his arm. Yami winced at the pressure but stood still, watching as she slid the needle into his arm, injecting something into his blood before releasing the tourniquet and pulling out the needle, placing both of them to the side. "That will help lower your temperature and slow your heart rate, so you won't…"

He smiled and reached out to hug her, letting Serenity cling to him. "Thanks."

"Don't. I'm helping you commit suicide."

"Watch the clock. I'll come back when you revive me." He gave her a smile before stepping out of his shoes and socks, stripping off his jacket before making sure that he sleeves were rolled up. He wanted as many parts of his body exposed to the cold so that this wouldn't be a lingering death. Yami glanced back up at her, tipping his head to the side before walking over and opening the door to the freezer, shivering as the cold air hit him.

"Yami…you don't have to do this."

He looked back at her before shrugging and walking inside of the freezer, shutting the door behind him. He heard it click shut as Serenity threw her weight against it. Yami glanced around the small space, finding a corner to settle himself in. He was careful not to touch the metal shelves, lowering himself to the floor and curling up in a ball, unable to stop himself from shivering.

Then he felt the temperature start to drop rapidly, Yami looking up to see Serenity standing at the window. She was crying but trying to smile. Yami offered her a weak smile of his own before he slumped forward, trying to curl into a tighter ball as his muscles protested the cramped position. He could still feel Serenity's gaze on him, and he wanted her to leave. It was bad enough that she knew that she was helping him die, but he didn't want the guilt of making her watch him go along with it.

After a long while he looked up again, getting glimpses of Serenity as she hurried around the room, probably getting things ready for when she woke him up. He tried to smile at that, his head dropping back down as he tried to shiver, the effort seeming too much. He was just so tired. It would be easier to just fall asleep right here, to stretch out on the cold floor and sleep until he was warm again. Yami felt the corner of his mouth twitch up in a rueful smile. At least he wouldn't have to fight the feeling. Still, he wanted to check on Serenity one last time before giving in.

Ponderously, he raised his head, blinking as his vision blurred for a moment. Yami stifled a yawn, catching a glimpse of Serenity looking into the freezer, biting her lip. He was sure that he saw tears on her face, but he ignored them. He would apologize and figure out a way to make this up to her later. Right now, all he wanted to do was sleep.

Serenity moved away from the window, Yami allowing his head to slowly drop back down, eyes beginning to shut. Movement by the window made him lift his head a fraction, his eyes meeting crazed blue ones before Noa Kaiba moved away from the window, Yami barely feeling the fear that he should have at the appearance of the government agent.

Instead, he allowed himself to slump, arms loosening from where he had held them close to his body as his breathing slowed and then stopped.


	11. The Rogue

** Chapter Ten: The Rogue **

Serenity forced herself to push away from the freezer door, walking towards the center of the lab and taking a deep breath to calm herself. She couldn't just stand here and panic over Yami's slow death in the small room just behind her; she had to get ready for when she had to revive him, and start a timer just from when he died to give him the full ten minutes. Serenity took another deep breath before forcing herself into a run, mentally making the list that she would need to help Yami.

For one, she would need blankets, just to warm him up slowly, adrenalin and, mostly like a defibrillator to shock his heart back into rhythm. There were plenty of other things, but her mind was already off on another tangent, her body working on it's own as she collected the things that she had put on her mental list.

Hopefully Joey would have the situation at the police station under control. She wished that they had been able to just sneak out of there while all of the officers looked the other way. But that thing that was killing people was the one thing that neither of them could control. Serenity reached up to rub at her forehead, remembering how Yami had stared at it. It was good that she couldn't see what marked her, or there would be some visible sign that she was guilty and she didn't think she could handle that.

She rushed back into the lab, checking over the things that she had gathered before dropping them onto the cart. Everything should be there, it had to be because she couldn't just run off while she was reviving Yami, he would be too weak. Serenity suddenly wished that she had kept Yugi to close to help her with this, shaking the thought out of her head a moment later. She wouldn't have been able to do this if Yugi was here with her, he would have protested. So this had to work.

Biting her lip, Serenity walked toward the freezer door, feeling a lump form in her throat the closer she got to the freezer. She didn't want to look in there, she didn't want to see Yami's pitiful attempts to keep warm even as his body shut down on him; it would just make her want to pull open the door and save him from this. But then, there was the chance that he would just turn to the gun again, and there was no bringing someone back after that. She clenched her hands into fists before looking through the window.

Serenity looked into the freezer, watching Yami slowly raise his head to look at her before letting it drop back down. She reached up and wiped the tears from her face with a long sigh, turning around and wrapping her arms around herself. Now she would have to calm down again, Serenity tried to feel annoyed about that but could only think about the man she had put in the freezer. Trying to find something else to focus on, she ran over the list of materials in her head, double checking it before giving a long sigh and turning around, only to scream.

Noa Kaiba jumped back at her scream, ducking and looking at her in fear. He ducked behind his arm for a moment before he recovered, giving her a long glare before peeking into the freezer. Serenity got a glimpse of surprise and disgust on his face before Noa turned around, the agent approaching her cautiously. "I never knew you had an interest in cryogenics, Doctor Taylor."

"I'm reviving him in ten minutes." Serenity swallowed nervously, inching towards the freezer door. It would be ten minutes if Yami was really dead, but Noa didn't need to know that.

She was surprised when the agent let her past him, but figured that it was just because he was being careful around her. He was probably scared that she would pull out another fire extinguisher and use it on him. For a moment, Serenity wished that she had a fire extinguisher. This time, she would use it hard enough to be sure that he'd be out for a good while. She gave Noa another glance before peeking into the room, biting back a sob as she noticed that Yami had stopped shivering. In fact, he didn't seem to be moving at all and the puffs of breath couldn't be seen.

"Ten minutes you say?" She jumped as Noa peered over her shoulder, tensing at the look that crossed the agent's face. Serenity tried to wiggle away, shocked when Noa reached out and touched her, pinning one of her shoulders against the metal door. "Now why would we do that?"

Serenity lunged for the handle, managing to open the door a bit before Noa slammed it shut again, pushing her away with his other hand. She stumbled backwards, catching herself on the counter and quickly reaching for something to arm herself with, disappointed when she only found a pen.

Calmly, Noa pulled out his gun, glancing at it before narrowing his eyes at her. "I found this in an alley close by here. You made it so obvious where you were going." He jerked the gun toward the door, Serenity sucking in a deep breath before forcing herself to stay in place. Noa snarled at her before reaching back on his belt and pulling out a pair of handcuffs, snapping one cuff around her wrist before yanking on the other. "Let's try this again. Move!"

Serenity winced at the pain in her wrist, giving the freezer door one last look before following Noa out of the room. As they walked into the hallway, she glanced over at the nearest clock, sucking in a deep breath. It was five fifty right now, she would have to be back by six to get Yami out of there. Serenity looked outside, shivering as she saw how dark it was getting. At least that would help her sneak away from Noa if she could.

She ducked her head as Noa looked back her way, edging further away from him as they walked down into the lobby, Serenity surprised at how empty the hospital was at this time. Then again, Noa could have done something about that. She narrowed her eyes at him, glaring at his back. From what little she knew of the government agent, it sounded like something that he would do. Why he wanted this case closed so badly was beyond her, as well as his animosity towards Yami.

A pained gasp was forced out of her as Noa shoved her in front of him, pressing the gun against her back. Serenity glanced back at him before turning to stare at the car that was parked right outside the hospital, looking around for anyone that could help her. But Noa had done his job well, there was no one around.

She had a moment more to think on it before she was shoved into the cop car that was waiting out front, Noa pressing the gun against her head to keep her still as he handcuffed her to the bar in the back. Serenity swallowed fearfully, Noa straightening up and leaning casually on the door before pulling his cell phone out of his pocket. He dialed a number before holding the phone up to his ear, Serenity shrinking back as he stared at her. "Yes, I've got news, the situation is taken care of. You can all go back to the hospital now. Yes, all the patients that had to remain behind are safe. No, it wasn't a bomb, it was a fugitive. I would rather assume he's dangerous than put innocent lives at risk. No, everything is fine, he was…detained. Him and his accomplice."

Noa nodded, listening to something on the other end of the line, his patience seeming to run out mere moments later. "No, everything is alright. Head back in. Oh, and one thing, the lab with the giant freezer. Yes, that one. No one is allowed to enter until I get back. I didn't have the time to search it thoroughly enough for my standards. I'll return as soon as possible, I wouldn't want to hinder your work."

He snapped the phone shut before slamming the car door in Serenity's face, the red head sitting back in shock. Noa was making sure that no one could get to Yami before it was too late. Then, he would have a story about Yami committing suicide to get away from his guilt, not a story that would hold water in court, but enough to make people happy. And then, if Yami was successful in stopping the creature, Noa would get the credit for stopping the murders.

Serenity growled to herself, pulling back on the bar. It didn't move, Serenity just watching the foam coating give a bit at the edge. She frowned and leaned forward to see if there was a way she could get out, sitting up abruptly as Noa slid into the driver's seat, staring the car before sighing. "Ah, a beautiful moonlit night, don't you agree."

"Let me go!"

Noa jerked, Serenity watching as he tensed before he quickly flipped on the radio, relaxing at the sound of the music. He sent her a glare through the rearview mirror before driving away.

Serenity matched his glare before she turned in her seat, staring back at the hospital. She tried not to look at the clock on the dashboard of the car; she didn't want to be aware of the minutes counting down until it was too late. Serenity pulled back on the bar again, watching the foam inch up again, Serenity staring at the edge of a screw that appeared. She shook her head, turning to look back at the hospital, feeling her heart sink.

* * *

Yami straightened up, expecting to feel his muscles cramp from the position that they had been forced into, but there was nothing. He frowned and stood up, feeling himself slide through something before he was able to stand without a slight pull on him. Yami turned around, jumping back and pressing against the door of the freezer as he found himself staring at his own body slumped on the floor. He swallowed nervously, pushing back further against the door until he slid through, a blinding white light shining down over his body the next moment.

He hesitated outside of the door for a moment, staring at the light. He was tempted to walk back in and step into the light and go on to the afterlife, just to apologize to all the people who he had let down and had died for him. But then, he wouldn't be able to save Serenity or anyone else. To walk back in would be to give up. He drew in a deep breath before turning away from the door.

His feet didn't make a sound as he padded through the room, pushing through the next door and out into the hallway. Almost immediately, he began to sink, Yami dashing forward a few steps to keep himself on this level, trying to ignore the pull that wanted to draw him further down. Surprisingly, that seemed to work, moving straight down the hallway becoming easier.

Yami smiled before running forward, surprised that he hadn't seen Serenity in the lab. He remembered her being there, but then there were the hazy memories of another person, someone that he couldn't stand. He shook his head, trying to jog his memory as the slipped through a wall and stepped outside, coming to a stop as he saw Noa steering a cop car away, Serenity sitting in the backseat.

"Bastard." Yami hissed the word out before running forward again, wanting to catch up to the car before it got up to speed. He only had to stick close to Serenity and wait for the rogue reaper to come and try to kill her again, and then he could attack. Although the element of surprise wouldn't be there, it was enough for him.

He reached out for the car, managing to grab the bumper. He took a deep breath before using that meager handhold to haul himself back up onto the trunk. Yami looked around before glancing inside at Serenity. Noa had handcuffed her to the bar in the back, Yami biting back a curse. He was sure that Noa had the keys, but he didn't want to risk being found out if he went looking for them. He wasn't even sure if Noa could see ghosts or not.

Yami settled, glancing around at the rooftops as Noa drove them out of town, straightening up to look at the government agent as he took a left turn. He looked up the hill that loomed above him, Yami having a moment to wonder why Noa would bother to take Serenity to the graveyard when something caught his eye. He shifted on his place on the trunk, watching as a shadow peeked out over the edge of one of the buildings, staring down at the car before leaping for it.

He tensed, keeping his place on the car, the rogue reaper seeming to realize he was there too late. Yami lunged forward, wrapping his arms around what he thought was the middle of the creature, the two of them flying off the car and slamming to the road.

Yami grinned before pushing himself up, only to be flattened to the ground as another car rolled over him. He has the strange sensation of being squished while the car drove over him, the feeling only lasting for a moment, then Yami was rolling out of the way of the next car, his gaze on the creature. He watched as the rogue reaper picked itself off of the pavement, passing easily through the cars and not seeming to notice that they were there. He envied the reaper its ease, mentally berating himself for not thinking about this sooner. He had watched Tomoya struggle to deal with being a ghost, and Tomoya had been dead for thirty-three years. Why had he expected just to deal with the changes easily?

He gritted his teeth and clambered to his feet, hearing the rogue reaper's blade slide out of the shaft of the scythe, the reaper getting a better hold on its weapon before floating forward. Yami tensed, searching for a place where he could lunge at the reaper and not worry about having to get hit, the decision taken away from him as a car ran through him.

At the first touch of metal against his skin, Yami reacted, trying to concentrate on going through the car instead of allowing himself to be run over by it. Instead, he felt everything below his waist vaporize, falling backwards and through the car before hitting the ground. He groaned and propped himself up, watching his lower half rearrange itself with a half smile. That was one less thing that he would have to worry about.

His head jerked up as he heard the rogue reaper screech, looking up in time to see the creature swinging its scythe at him. Yami pressed back against the pavement, unable to sink through it with part of him still reassembling itself. He closed his eyes and turned his head away, cursing his own stupidity at messing up this one chance.

Yami's eyes flew open when he heard the blade catch against something, looking up to see a staff blocking the fall of the blade. Yami tipped his head back, his mouth dropping open as he saw Yugi standing behind him, the reaper's arms trembling as he held the staff in place for a moment more before flicking one end of it up, the creature stumbling away as its blade was pushed away. Yugi stepped over Yami, tapping the end of his staff against the asphalt, barely glancing over as the blade slid out.

Yami swallowed before scrambling up to his feet, relieved that his legs were working. He leaned over, shivering for a moment before straightening up, trying to get over the fear that had filled him in that one more. He smiled, about to thank Yugi when he really looked at the reaper.

Yugi had been wearing a long-sleeved shirt and jeans this morning; they were the only clothes he had since his suitcases were still in the trunk of Yami's car. Yami had never seen the long black coat that Yugi wore now, flinching back as it stirred in a breeze that didn't exist, tendrils of it reaching up to cover Yugi's head, but the reaper waved them away, getting a better grip on his scythe.

"Yugi?"

"Who did this to you?" Yami started at the anger in Yugi's voice, not sure that he had ever heard Yugi angry before. He looked down at the ground for an instant before looking back up. Yami wanted to stumble backwards at the look on Yugi's face, the sheer hatred and fury that was in Yugi's eyes. "Who did this to you?"

"I…I did." That made Yugi freeze, looking away from the rogue reaper for a moment to glance at him before returning to his protective stance, Yami noticing that the black coat was forming more tendrils now. "I did, Yugi, because I had no other choice."

"You had no…God." Yugi sunk to one knee with a wince, Yami immediately rushing up behind Yugi and placing his hands on the reaper's shoulders. He felt Yugi shiver, twisting to look down at him only to stop as he stared at the rogue reaper.

The creature was getting ready to strike again, floating forward and raising its scythe above its head. Yami saw Yugi's head jerk up a moment later, stumbling back in time for Yugi to lash out, the reaper spinning his scythe in his hands before hitting the creature in the cowl with the end of his scythe. The creature went down, Yugi following quickly after it. The creature managed to get back up, Yugi forced to bring up a swing short, spinning in place to try and cut the creature as it moved to the side.

It hissed at Yugi, dodging his attacks before finally lashing out, Yugi crying out in pain and falling to one knee. Yami rushed over, surprised when Yugi just waved him back. The reaper stared at the cut on his arm before looking up, the two of them starting as they realized that their opponent had taken the chance to escape.

Yami swallowed nervously before kneeling down beside Yugi to look at the cut on the reaper's arm, partially watching as Yugi shrunk his scythe back down to the size of a pen. "It looks alright."

"It's not too deep. I'll be fine." Yugi stood up, staring at his arm before stuffing the scythe into his pocket, Yami reluctantly taking a step back. He saw a hurt look flash across Yugi's face before the reaper was pulling him into a hug, holding him close and trembling. "Why, Yami?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you kill yourself?" Yugi tightened his hold on him before shifting to rest his head on Yami's shoulder.

"I had to." Yami quickly held Yugi up as the reaper nearly collapsed. "Serenity is in trouble. That thing is after her this time. I couldn't just stand by."

Yugi stared up at him fearfully before sinking to the pavement, Yami being dragged along with the motion. He clung to Yugi, glancing between where the rogue reaper had disappeared to and Yugi, finally settling down on the ground beside Yugi.

He was surprised when Yugi reached up to cup his cheek, the reaper smiling softly as he brushed a thumb over Yami's check. "I've probably gone insane by now. If this is insanity, I think I like it."

Yami blinked and shook his head. "Why would you be insane?"

"When our balances go we tend to snap." Yugi gave a nervous laugh before looking pitifully up at him. "Please don't tell me that I'm not insane. Please just tell me that I am and that I've found you. I don't want to be alone again."

Yami ran a hand through Yugi's hair. "Just wait here alright? When you see Serenity have her take you back to the hospital. I promise that I'll be alright Yugi. I'll come back for you."

Yugi looked up at him in shock, Yami taking that moment to lead him over to the side of the road. He was about to run off again when he looked back at Yugi, hating how vulnerable the reaper looked. Nervously, he edged over to Yugi, kneeling in front of him before leaning forward to kiss Yugi on the forehead. He was disappointed that he didn't feel anything, not the sensation of Yugi's skin against his lips or any emotion that came with the kiss, there was just nothing. He took a step back, tucking a bang behind Yugi's ear before tuning and running back for the cemetery.

Even though he knew that he was doing the right thing, he hated that he was just leaving Yugi behind like this. He wasn't sure whether the reaper believed him or if Yugi would end up doing something stupid. He doubted the latter thought highly, although there could always be a first time for everything. Maybe he would be the one who would drive Yugi over the edge. Yami shook his head to get rid of that thought. Yugi would be fine until he could get Serenity free, and then he could focus on the rogue reaper. He could figure out everything else from there.

* * *

Serenity was jolted forward as the car came to a stop, sucking in a deep breath as she looked around at where they had parked. Instead of finding a space in the parking lot like a normal person would, Noa had just continued to drive, finding paths that were wide enough for the car until he had found a spot to his liking. Serenity swallowed, looking around at all the graves that surrounded her before turning to stare at the mausoleum that was off to one side. She shivered, and stared down at the floor of the car, trying to ignore the hairs that rose on the back of her neck.

"I find graveyards very peaceful, very calm." She looked up at Noa, staring at him through the rearview mirror. The agent smiled at her and worked to take off his gloves. "No wonder why people come here to think, it helps in a way. The bare facts of death could sober any mind."

"Take me back."

Noa gave her a pacifying smile. "I will, don't worry. I don't intend you kidnap you Mrs. Taylor. I just want to spend some time talking to you." He glanced down at the clock on the dashboard. "It won't take up more than twenty minutes of your time."

Serenity took a quick breath, staring at the time that the clock displayed. It was five fifty-five, twenty minutes would be too long. Any minute more he talked to her up here would be too long. "Please, just let me go back. He hasn't done anything."

"I'll be the judge of that."

"He hasn't done anything!" Noa jumped at her shout, putting his hands up like he was protecting his face from something. Serenity narrowed her eyes, preparing to shout again when she noticed something on his palm. Curious, she leaned forward, her mouth dropping open in shock as she stared at the swastika tattooed onto Noa's palm.

He cautiously looked up when she didn't say anything, following her gaze to the palm of his hand before ducking his head with a sigh, shivering in disgust. "M-my father knew Charlie. He worked at this job before I did but it got into his head. He went crazy, kept spouting stuff about transferring his soul to me. He carved this into my hand with a knife and then inked it in." Noa twitched in his place. "He kept cursing them, telling me about how he had been their sex slave and how I was doomed to the same fate…"

Noa gave a soft whimper before abruptly turning and rushing out of the car. Serenity leaned to the side, watching as the government agent used the car to keep himself upright, nearly falling over when he walked the length of the car. She took a deep breath, glancing back down at the foam cover for the bar, pushing it back to reveal the entire screw. Now if only she had something to turn it with…

"He was right." She glanced up at Noa, watching him lean on a headstone to keep himself upright. She bit her lip and looked around, leaning down to reach for the change that she spotted on the floor, her fingers finding the edge of a quarter as she sat back up. "I did follow him."

Her breath caught in her throat as she watched Noa's shirt slide down his arms, the garment fluttering to the dirt. Serenity shivered, staring at the few tattoos that were on his back before Noa turned around, his blue eyes wide and scared. She shivered at the look on the agent's face, nearly dropping the quarter. The fumble drew her attention back to her task. Now was the time to make a break for it, while Noa was distracted. She fitted the edge of the quarter into the screw and began to turn it, watching as Noa shivered out in the cold.

"I took his job when he finally killed himself. I was young and stupid, but I did it anyway." He reached down to brush his fingers over one of the sigils carved into his body, a look of disgust on his face. "My first mission was to infiltrate the Children of Lucifer. I spend months practicing ritualistic cannibalism and drinking goat's blood. I still can't eat meat; it all tastes like human flesh."

Serenity bit her lip to keep from throwing up, turning the screw faster, hating the fact that she couldn't cover her ears.

"They didn't even give me a week to recover before I was sent off again. I still don't know where I was for those three years, all I knew was pain. I was nothing to those people, nothing but a whore. And then I understood, I understood why my father had put up with this for so many years." She looked up to see the crazed smile back on Noa's face, the government agent reaching for his shirt. "The body may bend and be broken, but the mind is something that you can control, mind over matter. They can do what they want with my body, but my mind will remain intact."

The screw came out of the hole, Serenity forcing herself not the smile as she pulled the bar back, sliding the one cuff off of it. She pressed her fingers together, trying to ignore the pain as she worked the other cuff off of her hand. Now all she had to do was to climb into the front seat of the car and drive off. Serenity slid the bar back into its former place, glancing up to see that Noa was still occupied before shifting, only to stop and shiver in pain.

Something was squeezing her heart, squeezing it so hard it was impossible to breathe. She tried to draw in a breath, tried to move, anything to get this thing away from her.

Then it was gone, Serenity frowning and reaching up to touch her heart. It had to have been the rogue reaper, it had felt just like what had been describe to her, but why had it stopped. She twisted in her seat, vainly hoping that she would catch a glimpse of the killer only to freeze as she heard the car start. Serenity turned to stare at the driver's seat, smiling as she saw the car shift into reverse. "Yami!"

There was no answer from the ghost, the car continuing to back down the way that they had come, Serenity jerking her head up as she saw Noa rushing after them, cursing.

Suddenly, the wheel jerked, Serenity screaming as the car turned and ran into the mausoleum. She lurched forward in her seat, the metal bar jerking loose and slamming to the floor. Serenity looked around, staring at the front of the car before taking the chance to scramble over the backseat, settling into place in the front. She quickly buckled her seatbelt before throwing the car into drive, jumping as Noa came running towards her. She slammed her hand down on the lock for the door, relaxing at the click before pressing on the gas pedal.

It took a moment of careful maneuvering, Serenity trying to ignore Noa as he tried to get back in the car. She looked around, trying to see if she could spot Yami, wincing as she drove into a head stone. Serenity muttered and apology to the person whose grave she had driven over before managing to turn around and step on the gas. Noa was quickly left behind to run after, Serenity frowning as he slowed to a stop. The agent had to be up to something now that his plan had gone wrong. A quick glance at the clock on the dashboard showed that she didn't have time to worry about that.

It was five fifty-eight. She had to get back down to the hospital in two minutes.

Serenity swallowed harshly before speeding up, careening down the hill at the speed that made her stomach roll. It was too easy to imagine taking a turn wrong and ending up flipped over on the side of the road. She glanced at the clock again, considering her options before slowly down a bit. She would be no use to Yami dead.

She braked as she went around a turn, jumping as she saw someone stand up by the side of the road, only to recognize them a moment later. Serenity stopped the car, glancing back to make sure that Noa wasn't following her before rolling down the window. "Yugi! Hop in!"

Yugi looked up at her before shuffling over, fiddling with a small length of wood about the size of a pen. Serenity stared at that for a moment before driving on, watching Yugi out of the corner of her eye.

He seemed different, more fragile than before. It reminded her of Yami on his worse days. "A-are you alright?"

Yugi jumped at the sound of her voice, giving her a strange look out of the corner of his eye. "Y-no. D-do you know w-why Yami d-decided to…"

Serenity flinched as Yugi trailed off. She had forgotten that he was able to see ghosts, and he must have seen Yami on his way up. While both Yami and Yugi claimed that there was nothing between them, she could see that something was building there, and it must have been a shock to see someone that you liked dead. She bit her lip, glancing down at the clock before tightening her hands on the steering wheel. "Don't worry, Yugi, we're going to save him."

"S-save him?"

"Yes." She dared another glance at the clock before forcing herself to look away. It wouldn't do her any good just to watch the time pass by. "It'll be alright Yugi." She saw him nod slowly, seeming to begin to come back to himself. "I need your help though."

"Anything."

"Good." Serenity nodded, concentrating on getting them back to the hospital. She flicked on the lights of the police cruiser, not wanting to get pulled over for that infraction at the moment. Joey already had enough to sort out with Noa's false alarm call to the hospital and their 'escape'. She shook her head, hoping that her brother could get through all of this without getting in too much trouble.

Serenity turned the car into the front of the hospital, turning it off before jumping out, Yugi following close on her heels. They both rushed into the building, Serenity slightly mollified by the sight of it bustling at its normal pace. Of course, their unorthodox entrance drew the attention of most of the people. Serenity blushed and ducked her head but Yugi didn't seem to notice, he just turned unerringly in the direction of the lab and broke into a run. She hesitated a moment before sprinting after him, barely noticing the people that called out greetings to her.

She managed to catch up to Yugi, grabbing onto his arm and pulling him around. For a moment, she got a glimpse of darkness where Yugi's face was and luminous purple eyes. Serenity jumped backwards and shook herself, relaxing when she realized that she was just under stress. She swallowed and got a better hold on Yugi's arm. "Listen, you have to do what I say, alright? We have to do this right."

Yugi nodded quickly, glancing in the direction of the lab before pulling a bit, trying to get out of her hold. Serenity shook her head, pulling him back a step. "Yugi, you really have to listen to me on this. If we don't do this right, then he could die."

Just mentioning that had Yugi slumping, Serenity staring at him worriedly before beginning to walk again. They could walk and talk if they had to; there was no more time to waste. "What's between you and Yami?"

Yugi struggled with the answer for a moment before dropping his head. "I need him." He glanced up at her before shaking his head. "There's more to it than that, but that's the simple answer. I've known him for three days but I can't live without him. And if he hadn't said that he was coming back…God, I have no idea what I would be doing now…"

Serenity looked over her shoulder at him before shaking her head. She would have to pry more later, they were already late in getting here. She could only hope that Yami would hold on for them. Serenity took a deep breath, smiling as she saw that there was nothing blocking the lab before ushering Yugi in.

She was about to enter herself when a familiar voice echoed down the hall. "Doctor Taylor!"

Serenity winced and turned around to look at Doctor Sanders, trying to look innocent but failing as the senior doctor walked up to her. "Didn't you hear? The lab was closed off."

"Yes, because Agent Kaiba is covering his tracks." Serenity didn't know where the boost of courage came from, turning away from Doctor Sanders and opening the doors to the lab. She saw Yugi standing by the freezer door, a scared look on his face. Serenity took a deep breath before turning around to stare at Doctor Sanders. "If you don't want this going on the record of the hospital, I suggest you help me."

He considered her words for a moment before nodding, Serenity taking a deep breath before explaining the situation.

* * *

Yami grunted as he was slammed back against the wall of the mausoleum, trying to pry Valon's hand from around his neck. He glanced over to where Serenity was working to get to the front of the car, breathing a sigh of relief when he didn't see the rogue reaper there. A shake from Valon drew his attention back to the ghost. "What do you think you are doing Yami? Did you lead your reaper friend up here to take us all away?"

"Rogue." He managed to gasp the word out, Valon dropping him instantly.

Yami grunted as he hit the ground and rolled, looking up at Valon as he strode forward, the ghost pulling a gun from his hip. "No reaper is getting into my cemetery again."

He nodded in agreement, even though Valon couldn't see him, rubbing his neck before standing up. Yami gave Serenity another glance, glad to see that she was already heading down the hill. Hopefully she would stop to pick up Yugi and reassure the reaper that nothing was going too horribly wrong. But what did disturb him was the fact that Noa had slowed to a prowl. Yami narrowed his eyes, the agent was probably going to sit back and wait until he could make his move.

"Shit!" The shout from Valon made him turn around, Yami backing up quickly as the rogue reaper pulled itself out of the ground, quickly getting a better hold of its scythe. He rushed forward to yell at Valon to get away, only to watch as the ghost was cut in half, the reaper not bothering to even collect the soul.

Yami flinched back, his attention grabbed by a sudden clatter of something against the nearest headstone. He turned to stare at the cavalry sword that had been dropped, looking up at the ghosts that were hiding around him before giving a short nod.

He rushed for the weapon, snatching it up before turning to face the reaper, glaring at the creature as it seemed to laugh at him. Yami shifted his weight, holding the sword comfortably in his hands. His first strike would be for the scythe hand, and then for the other hand. Then he would go for the head and whatever else tried to hurt him. Yami's grip tightened for a moment before he lunged forward, ducking under the first swing of the blade and cutting through the robe that made up the reaper.

Yami stumbled back, kicking the scythe away before darting forward again; cutting of the reaper's other hand before going for the head. He kicked the body backwards, watching it just flop to the ground before he drove the sword through it, smiling as the stared down at the creature. But the euphoria only lasted a few seconds; it had been too easily to kill it. He turned to stare at the scythe, bending over to touch it only to have it dissolve into black muck. He flinched and shook his hand to get the stuff off of it before taking a step back.

Now the ghosts were daring to come out from their hiding places, darting from headstone to headstone, all of them peering at the creature that lay on the ground. Yami just gave them all an even look before turning to look at the head of the creature, feeling his stomach twist at the gruesome fact it had. Glassy eyes looked back at him with a beak of a mouth opening and closing as it hissed, revealing sharp teeth. Yami glared back before picking the head up, watching it flatten and the eyes bulge a bit. He gave a harsh laugh. "I'm not afraid of you."

The creature just hissed, Yami feeling his patience come to a quick end. He didn't know how long he had until Serenity pulled him out of the freezer, so he had to work fast. "Who are you?"

It didn't respond again, continuing to just glare at him. Yami gave a growl of frustration before shaking the head again. "Who are you?"

When it didn't answer again he turned and threw it with all of his might at the nearest headstone, the stone leaning back a bit with the force of the impact. The creature gave out a pained cry before it began to rearrange itself, oozing down the headstone until it rested on the ground, a more human face forming. It coughed a few times before blinking, staring up at Yami before giving him a smile. "Guess who?"

Yami had seen that face before, it still cropped up in the news and Fairwater was still best known for it. "Johnny Bartlett."

"Ah, and here I thought I would surprise you." Johnny coughed, more of the black muck trickling out of his mouth.

"And here I thought guys like you went to Hell."

"Oh, I did, but I got out." Yami's eyes widened at that, Johnny just laughing. "There are all sorts of ways out if you know them. The bureaucracy of death isn't the tightest system out there; there are many ways to slip out unnoticed. Even the dead are corruptible. Aren't I right?"

The question was directed at the ghosts who had gathered around, Yami turning around to look at all of them as they inched closer. One of them started forward, offering his hand to Yami. "I'm Henry Saint-Claire. I just want to shake the hand of the man who finally caught my murderer again."

He went to shake the ghost's hand, staring at the number twelve that was carved into the man's skin, surprised to see it there. The others hadn't shown up once the people were dead. "You have a number."

Yami blushed when he realized that he had spoken out loud, dropping the ghost's hand and looking away as the ghost reached up to touch it. He glanced back over, watching as the ghost cleared his throat. "Bartlett carved it on my forehead as I lay dying. I was the last."

There was a wet laugh from behind him, Yami turning around to watch as Johnny coughed up more of the black gunk. "He couldn't be more wrong, could he? I got me twenty-seven more now, that's a total of thirty-nine. And I'm aiming for a hundred."

Yami growled and stepped forward, his anger quickly changing to shock as he watched the black gunk get sucked into the ground. He cursed, ignoring the mutters of surprise from the other ghosts before throwing himself through the ground, grunting as he forced himself to stop on the stone floor. He glanced up at the ceiling before pushing himself off the stone floor. He must have been under the mausoleum, Yami shivering as he realized how far underground it extended. He shook his head and stood up, rushing through the bars that kept the small room he was in from where the bodies were, tackling the pondering hulk that was Johnny.

The muck sucked him in, Yami gasping and trying to struggle away. He grunted, managing to get his arms free only to have Johnny punch him in the throat. He reeled from it, the reaction more habitual than anything else. By then, Johnny was pulling him close again, ready for another punch. Yami gritted his teeth and sunk his hands into the muck, searching for something as he tried to ignore the blows to his head. If all of this stuff had disappeared here to join with Johnny, then it would be here too.

His hands slid around a smooth shaft, Yami smirking before yanking himself free. He kept a tight hold on the scythe, trying to arrange his hands into a hold that would allow him to use the weapon. But, even as he was doing that, the mass on the ground trembled in fear. He laughed, tapping the end of the staff on the floor and watching the blade slide out.

Yami glanced back over at Johnny, watching the black gunk peel off and disappear, leaving a cringing ghost below him. Yami leered down at him, glancing at the bald head with the burnt ring of skin, probably from where Johnny had been electrocuted before shaking his head. All he had to do was strike and Johnny would be dead. Serenity would be safe, Tèa would be avenged and he would be able to live his life for once.

He raised the scythe above his head, aiming for Johnny as he cringed on the ground. Yami took a deep breath and brought the weapon down, jerking at the slight shock that ran through his body. He paused, the scythe hovering halfway through the motion. Yami glanced around before shaking his head, taking another step forward to repeat the action, wanting to kill Johnny before the ghost could kill again, only to have that shock run through him again.

Yami dropped the scythe, clutching at his stomach as another shock rolled through him. He swayed in place before he blacked out for a moment, his last glimpse being the smug smile on Johnny's face.

He opened his eyes mere moments later to see the titled ceiling of the hospital, trying to gasp for breath through protesting lungs.


	12. Damned Souls

** Chapter Eleven: Damned Souls **

Yugi felt the incredible pressure on his being lessen the moment Yami took his first wheezing breath, forgetting about the other two people in the room in that moment. His balance was alive and well, a rogue reaper hadn't take Yami away from him. He wiped the few tears that ran down his face away, leaning forward to kiss Yami on the forehead, not really aware of what he was doing. "Yami…"

Something knocked against his leg, Yugi looking down to see it was Yami's hand. He smiled and shifted back a bit, taking Yami's hand in both of his and raising it to his lips. He kissed Yami's knuckles, watching his balance relax, his breathing becoming a bit more even.

"Serenity." Yugi looked up at Serenity and the doctor, watching as they worked to keep Yami alive, Serenity gently pulling the blankets over Yami and patting his leg. She looked over at Yugi and gave him a partial smile before turning back to her patient.

Yugi did the same, stroking Yami's bangs back from his face, wincing at the chill on his skin. Yami stared at him for a moment before coughing, Yami's mouth moving as he tried to speak. Yugi frowned and leaned forward, only getting what sounded like painful gasps of air from Yami before sitting up, shaking his head. "Calm down."

"No…time." Yami coughed, trying to sit up only to be pushed down again. His balance glared at the two doctors before turning to look at Yugi again. "Found…who…Bartlett."

Yugi froze at the name, wondering why it sounded so familiar. He looked over at Serenity, noticing that she was staring at Yami with wide eyes. So it was someone familiar to Serenity, someone important. Yugi let out a curse as he remembered, Johnny Bartlett, the killer that Fairwater was known for. He turned to look back at Yami, about to tell him that everything was alright, no one could escape from death when he remembered what Seto had told him over the phone earlier.

 _"Yugi, you and I are probably the only people who know that the higher ups have almost no control over the afterlife, they just can tell us which souls are going to get stuck and when. There are many things that they don't know."_

He bit his lip and looked at the floor. If that was really the case, it meant that people could also be slipping back into the world of the living before their official reincarnation time, if they even had one. The region that most humans thought of as Hell was very reluctant to give out second chances. Yugi released his lip and looked back at Yami. "He's back?"

"Killing…people…"

"Vivian." Serenity sat up with that, almost standing up only to be pushing down by the other doctor.

"He's just rambling. Give him a moment to sort himself out."

Yugi narrowed his eyes, ready to snap at the man when Yami gave his hand a weak squeeze. "Get her…get her out…of there."

"Serenity-"

"Both." Yami shook his head. "Both."

"No. No, Yami I'm not leaving you." Yugi's eyes widened as Yami hauled himself up onto his elbows, obviously ignoring the frantic attempts of the doctor to lie back down. Yugi smiled weakly at that before leaning over to rest his forehead against Yami's. "I don't want to lose you again. I was so close to-"

"Fine…with Serenity…Please."

Yugi glanced over at Serenity, watching as she bit her lip before shrugging. He laughed before helping Yami lie back down, gently stroking the bangs out of his face. "Get well soon."

"Will come…when ready…"

Yugi nodded before standing up, wrapping his arms around himself and jerking his head towards the door, walking quickly. He could hear Serenity hurrying after him, trying to focus on the noise that she made walking instead of the painful breaths that Yami was taking. He ducked his head and gritted his teeth, quickly ducking out of the door before taking a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. It was easier to keep himself under control now that Yami was alive, but that brush with insanity had been too close.

Yugi rubbed his arms, looking up as Serenity stepped out of the lab, giving her a slow nod before turning and walking towards the entrance to the hospital. "We'll take the police cruiser. Do you have a plan?"

Serenity nodded before wincing. "We'll have to be a little slow in getting her out of that house. She's been there all of her life and has a tyrant of a mother to deal with."

He bit back a curse, forcing himself to calm down. It was alright now, Yami was alive and they had identified their rogue reaper. Although, Johnny Bartlett had never become a reaper, the authorities tended to avoid hiring murderers. So how had he gotten the ability to take on the reaper form and wield one of their scythes? There was a chance that Bartlett could have stolen it from one of the reapers who had been here, something that Yugi wouldn't put past the murderer, but he wasn't willing to settle on it as the end all explanation.

His attention was yanked back to the present as they walked out into the night, Yugi automatically calling up his black coat to keep warm, earning a surprised look from Serenity when she looked back over and saw him wearing it. He just gave her an innocent smile, watching as she slipped into the car before starting the engine. He would have to be more careful around her; Serenity was getting good at spotting things.

He slid into the car and settled down, Serenity seeming to be focused on the drive ahead of them, pushing the car faster as soon as they were out of the town. Yugi swallowed and shifted in his seat, glancing over at Serenity before relaxing a bit. "Where are we taking her?"

"I don't know. Away?" Serenity winced, looking guilty. "I don't think that there's a place where that thing won't appear."

"Well," Yugi tipped his head to the side, "I can think of a few."

If they took Vivian to a place where there were a bunch of reapers, then she would be safe. A rogue, no matter how insane they were, would never dare to get too close to the very things that could kill it. It was his plan to keep Yami safe if this got even worse. He would ship Yami back off to Japan where he would have Seto and Ryou to guard him. While their group wasn't as large as all of the others, the fact that the oldest reaper was there would be enough to deter it. And, if he was going to send Yami and Vivian off, he had a feeling that he would have to have Serenity go too.

But then there would be the hours on the plane when they would be unguarded. Yugi bit his lip at the thought, trying to figure out a way around that. He could just pull his seniority on one of the reaper groups here and guard the three until they got there, then he'd have to come straight back here and begin his hunt. Yugi nodded to himself at the thought, it was a much better idea than just hoping that Bartlett wouldn't attack them on a plane.

At the thought of the ghost, Yugi frowned. But he kept forgetting that Bartlett wasn't actually a reaper. Would the fact that there were other reapers around stop him? Or would he just barrel through and kill all three of them anyway?

Yugi shoved the thoughts away as they pulled up the drive to the Wong house, looking out the window to stare at the old hospital with a shiver. He turned to look at the house that they were driving up to, jerking forward as Serenity came to a sudden stop. She gave him an apologetic smile before turning the car off. "I don't want to get too close."

"Right." They both stepped out of the car, Serenity walking straight for the house while Yugi looked around. There didn't seem to be anything wrong here at the moment, but his senses told him to be alert. He turned in place, jumping when he passed through a section of ground.

Immediately, Yugi knelt down, frowning as he stared at the decomposing ectoplasm on the ground, gathering up his courage before turning the lump over, only to jump back when he saw that Tristan was staring blankly at him. He stood up and quickly wiped his hands on his jeans, feeling shivers run down his spine. He guessed that Serenity had come up here after she had dropped him off, that's when Bartlett would have marked her as prey. Tristan must have saved her from that first strike.

Yugi shook his head, reaching down with his left hand and resting it on the pile of ectoplasm. It would take the remainder of the night for Tristan to actually decompose to a point where his soul would be free. Even though ghosts could change themselves to walk through walls or take control of people, ectoplasm was actually very resilient; it had to be to keep the soul intact.

He closed his eyes and focused on the soul that he could feel through the ectoplasm, sucking in a deep breath before pulling it out and sending it to the afterlife. Yugi opened his eyes and sat back on his heels, glancing towards the house before hurrying after Serenity. He had wasted enough time out in the open.

The interior of the house was dark, Yugi pressing himself close to the wall and padding down the hallway, glancing into the first room that he found to see that Serenity was in there with Vivian. He cleared his throat, the two women spinning around to stare at him before they both looked up towards the stairs, Yugi turning his head to see an elderly lady glaring back down at them. She gave him one last look before continuing to make her way down the stairs. "Vivian never leaves the house."

"I know that." Serenity gave an annoyed sigh before shaking her head. "But it's not safe here for her. We're going to take her-"

"You won't take her anywhere. She remains here. I know what's best for her."

"What? Locking her up and framing her for murder?"

The old lady started at that, her hand flying up to rest over her heart. "What do you mean by that?"

Serenity's eyes narrowed. "Why do you have Yami Gardner's knife in your closet?"

"You went into my room?" Mrs. Wong turned and hurried up the stairs, Vivian rushing after her.

Yugi watched the pair before shaking his head and walking into the room, glancing towards the open window before facing Serenity. He had to figure out a way to tell her that Tristan was gone for good this time, opening his mouth to give the explanation when Serenity began talking. "She won't leave, but she knows what's going on. She says that Johnny has been tormenting her."

"Why her?"

"She was his girlfriend." Serenity stared at him in surprise, Yugi shrugging. She shook her head and began pacing. "She was the one who was with him when they murdered all of those people, except she only went along so Johnny wouldn't kill her. Then she was blamed for his part on all of this. So far, this is the only place she's known. And I was so close to getting her out."

Yugi shrugged again before walking back to the door, hearing the dull thud of footsteps upstairs. He glanced up as the chandelier shook, dust drifting down into the room. Old houses like this always had him on edge; there was either a ghost waiting around the corner to try and get him or the house was on the verge of falling apart. Either way, his senses were going crazy, telling him that there was something wrong. Of course, that could just be from the hospital, the places of a murder always rang with the emotions for a while.

He took a careful step towards the bookcase, skimming over the titles for something to do while they waited, jumping as Vivian bounded into the room, surprised at her sudden cheer. Serenity seemed to take it in stride, walking over to the woman with a smile. "Well."

"Mother says she'll go to the police now…but she'll be down in a minute." Vivian gave them an apologetic smile before wandering over to shut the window. Yugi noticed her give a little shiver after the window was closed, the woman hiding it as she carefully arranged the curtains before turning to look back at them. "I'll just get my coat."

She smiled at the both of them and walked back into the kitchen, Yugi shivering and backing towards the door. Something was going on here, and it wasn't just the hospital. He looked around the sitting room, feeling trapped. Something was here, something that he couldn't quite place but something very familiar. He grabbed his arms and dug his nails in, the little bit of pain forcing him to concentrate. Yugi shook his head and looked back at Serenity, glancing towards where Vivian had disappeared to before walking towards the stairs.

Serenity reached out to stop him, tugging on his arm and trying to pull him back into the room. "What are you doing?"

"Going to look around."

"She'll be back in a moment." Serenity tugged at his sleeve again, Yugi feeling a chill run up his spine. It was all he could do to keep from reacting by letting himself dissolve into his real form. He reached down to tug the ends of his coat closer to him, hoping that Serenity would notice his reaction. He reached down, stopping himself from pulling out his scythe.

"Something is going on here and I want to find out what." Yugi pulled away from her and walked carefully to the stairs. He heard her hesitate before following him, Yugi glancing back to wave her away. Serenity shook her head, walking quickly across the hall to stand on the step behind him.

"I'm not letting you out of my sight. You and Yami can see things that I can't and you two seem to have a better hold on what's going on than anyone else."

Yugi stared at her, blinking before turning away and walking up the stairs. He could feel Serenity clinging to him as he climbed, flinching at the creaks that the stairs made. He took a deep breath as he came to the top of the stairs, glancing around before Serenity nudged him in the right direction. They walked slowly down to the end of the hall, Yugi staring at the closed door.

He was reaching out for it when it warped, twisting and turning on itself. Yugi gasped and stepped back, his eyes going wide. Something was definitely in this house and it was nothing that he had ever seen before. He carefully inched forward, touching the wood of the door, surprised that it didn't feel different. It just looked different. Yugi tipped his head to the side and pulled his hand away, tempted to call Ryou or Seto to see what was going on. Unfortunately, they didn't have the time.

He took a deep breath and opened the door, peering inside. Usually the case was that any manipulations of the real world happened because of a specific creature. It was more likely that whatever was doing this was inside this room. But he was disappointed, Yugi's mouth dropping open in shock as he stared at the bed in the room.

He was tempted to just shut the door and turn away, but he couldn't stop staring. And he wasn't fast enough to stop Serenity from looking in, the red head pushing the door open and peering in. He heard her muffle a scream, not blaming her for the reaction.

Lying in the bed was Mrs. Wong, her white gown soaked in blood from the multiple stab wounds on her body.

* * *

Vivian kept her smile on until the kitchen door slammed behind her, the expression transforming into a scowl. "Patronizing bitch."

"Now, Vivian, is that anyway to talk about people?" She perked up at the familiar voice, turning to look at the ghost that leaned against the kitchen counter. The ghost gave her a smile before walking over to her, picking up her injured hand in his own before making a face, looking up to push her hair away from her neck. "Oh, baby, I never mean to hurt you that bad."

"I would have asked you to stop if it hurt too much. Besides, it was all part of the game." She kissed him, hating that she couldn't feel anything at the contact. From the regretful and angry look on his face, he couldn't feel anything either.

Vivian stepped away from Johnny, shrugging her shoulders before looking out towards the hall as she heard footsteps. She frowned and moved away from the door, glancing around the kitchen. It was still in shambles from the earlier fun that she and Johnny had been having, before they had been interrupted by her mother and the psychic that was bothering Johnny. Vivian felt a thrill tingle down her spine at the memory of the anger in Johnny's voice as he had spoken of that psychic. That tone could only mean one thing, death.

She smiled and slunk through the kitchen, carefully stepping over the mug that she had dropped today. She would pick it up later if there were any parts to be used on it but her eyes were trained on the knives on the other side of the room.

Johnny seemed to pick up on what she was doing, going to lean on the counter close to the knives. "I was almost caught by that idiot today. I could have gotten rid of him too, if not for that damn reaper." Vivian paused at the venom in Johnny's voice, turning to look at her boyfriend as he continued. "And I almost had the girl too, and then we would have had more."

"M-more?"

"Yes." He was leaning forward now, smirking. "More blood, more screams, more souls."

"More sounds good."

"More is good." He gave her a hungry look before pulling her close, Vivian reaching for one of the knives before thinking better of it. Now was not time for play. It would only be a matter of time before the two discovered her mother upstairs, so she had to act before then.

Carefully, she pulled Johnny's hands to rest on her stomach, knowing that they would roam whether she gave them permission or not. She turned her attention back to the knives, watching Johnny focus on them as well. "What would be best? Not the cleaver…I'm thinking the carving knife."

She saw Johnny's eyes move over the array before he nodded, reluctantly letting her go. Vivian nearly skipped over to the rack, carefully taking down the carving knife and examining its edge, giving Johnny an eager nod when she was sure that it was sharp. A dull knife would take too long, and they would get caught again. She wouldn't have the police ruining their fun again. There was no way in hell that she was getting trapped in jail for the rest of her life.

Johnny stepped out of her way as Vivian walked back into the sitting room, the woman glancing around before looking up towards the stairs, sure that the two had already found her mother. Her hand tightened on the carving knife before she forced herself to relax, looking back at Johnny. "You said one was a reaper."

Her boyfriend gave a slow nod, rubbing his chin as he thought. "It might be best if you left him to me." Johnny held up his hands as she glared at him, immediately trying to placate her. "It's just even that way. Besides, I know this reaper. I'll take good care of him."

"But the woman is your kill."

"They're not my kills." Johnny moved back over to her, kissing the back of her neck. "They're ours."

Vivian shivered at his cold presence behind her, shifting her grip on the handle before nodding and edging forward, moving silently out into the hallway. She had lived all of her life in this house, she knew how to move over the old floorboards so she would never been heard, unlike the other two. She could hear them now at her mother's door, the thought making her bite her lip. It would only be moments now until they discovered what was happening.

She felt Johnny slip away from her side, sliding into the floor before becoming a part of the wall, the lump in the wallpaper giving him away. But, when he moved towards the ceiling, he was practically invisible; humans never looked up. Content that their plan was going well, Vivian sped up a bit, jumping the last step to keep it from creaking before rushing down the hall.

The man heard her first, turning to face her before her jerked and looked up at the ceiling, letting out a curse. That one had to be the reaper that Johnny had talked about. Serenity was still too busy staring at her in fright, and that would cost her. Vivian let out a scream as she rushed the two, the sound forming into a curse as the man pulled Serenity into her mother's room. Vivian tore in after them, stabbing wildly with the knife as she tried to hit them.

She heard something hit the ground, turning to see that the reaper had gotten behind her and was now standing with his scythe at the ready. Vivian hissed before throwing the knife at him, the move thwarted when he blocked the throw. Vivian snarled and took a step back, already looking around the room. She wasn't stupid enough to attack the man now that he had a weapon, so she would have to wait until Johnny made his move, or get a long range weapon.

Vivian's eyes widened for a moment before she dove for the wardrobe, allowing the man and Serenity to get away for now. But she had something better. It wasn't as fun as the knife, but it would do the job just as well. She threw out her mother's coats, not caring that some of them landed on her mother's body. That would be another thing she would take care of later. Now, it was more important that her prey didn't get away.

She found the object she was looking for quickly, pulling out the shotgun with a huge grin before reaching up for the spare box of bullets, snarling when her hand knocked against something. Carelessly, she pushed the pocket knife out of her way before grabbing the box, emptying it into her pocket. Vivian hesitated for a moment before grabbing a flashlight and some electrical tape, quickly fashioning a light for her weapon. The chase would probably lead her outside and, while the chase could be fun, she didn't want to miss her targets. There could be no witnesses.

* * *

Yami stopped to lean against the side of the Wong house, coughing for a moment. As soon as the fit was over he straightened up, shaking his head. Thankfully, he was able to breathe better now, although he was sure that the running he had been doing hadn't helped him any. He glanced back at his care before slipping into the house, glancing around the bottom floor before deciding that being subtle wasn't going to get him anywhere. The rogue reaper was still on the loose. "Yugi! Serenity!"

"Yami!" He jumped at Yugi's shout, looking up towards the second floor, rushing up the stairs. Running took a bit more effort than normal, Yami leaning heavily on the railing to keep him up. He coughed, shaking his head before forcing himself to keep moving, seeing Serenity and Yugi rushing his way.

Yugi smiled at him and rushed right into his arms, the two holding each other. Yami gave a sigh before slumping in Yugi's arms, ignoring the short shouts of surprise as he nearly collapsed, catching himself at the last minute. He hung onto Yugi's shoulders, giving the reaper a shaky smile before standing up on his own. "Sorry, still trying to get a handle on this again."

The reaper patted his shoulder, Yami only then realizing that Yugi was holding his scythe. He frowned, reaching out to touch the staff before turning around. "What's going on?"

"Complications. Vivian is-" Yugi reached out to yank him back. "Not that way!"

Yami stared at him in shock, the three of them jumping at the sound of a gunshot coming from down the hall. Yami gave the two of them a shocked look, Yugi grabbing his arm and pulling him into the closest room, locking the door behind them before taking up the guard position in front of the door. "Vivian is insane. She's stabbed her mother to death."

"Vivian?"

"She must have lied, about Johnny." Serenity looked embarrassed, the expression only lasting a moment as she stared at the scythe that Yugi held. "She said that she didn't want to be a part of all of it before but…"

"She's in it with her dead boyfriend." Yugi scowled, tightening his hands on the shaft of his scythe. "She's coming."

Serenity scooted close to Yami, gripping his arm as she stared at Yugi. "Where did he get that? I don't remember seeing him carry it. Vivian just came running at us and then he had it."

Yami swallowed, looking between the reaper and Serenity. "Not now. I promise that I'll explain later, but not now."

Serenity gave a nervous nod, getting a tighter hold on Yami's sleeve before she was suddenly yanked backwards. Yami spun around, growling and lunging for the frame of the painting that had thrown itself off the wall to grab Serenity around her neck. He pulled the painting away, ducking a clumsy blow to his head before slamming the portrait down over the end of the bed, one of the decorative cones ripping through it.

He stumbled back at the moan that came from the painting, watching as a stream of silvery colored mist rose from the painting and was pulled back into an urn that was sitting on a pile of books. Yami glanced back at Yugi, the reaper raising an eyebrow before throwing himself to one side at the gunshot, the three of them staring at the hole in the door in awe.

Yami glanced back over at Yugi before scrambling across the floor to pick up the urn, staring at it before wiping the ashes off the name plate at the bottom. "Oh hell."

"What?"

He turned around to show the two. "These are Johnny Bartlett's ashes."

"Vivian said…" Serenity trailed off as she stared at the urn, shaking her head. "How the hell did she get those?"

"No idea." Yami ducked as other hole was made in the door, crawling back over to Yugi. "So, what do we do?"

The reaper stared at the ashes for a moment before looking at the old hospital. "We have to take it to hollowed ground, a church specifically. But the town doesn't have one, at least not close enough that Vivian and Johnny won't get us."

"The hospital." The two men looked over at Serenity. She jerked her head towards the window. "We climb out and make a run for the hospital. It should have enough stuff to take cover behind if we get into trouble."

"Sounds like a plan." Yami turned to look at Yugi, waiting for the reaper's approval. He saw Yugi wince before giving a slow nod, reaching out to place a hand on Yugi's shoulder. "What do we do once inside?"

"Go inside the church and stand in the light, you'll be able to see it. Then open the urn. If nothing happens, scatter the ashes in the light and only in the light. That should work." Yugi was biting his lip. Yami smiled softly and turned Yugi's head so he could see his eyes, giving the reaper a quick kiss on the lips before crawling to the window, cradling the urn awkwardly in his left hand. He eased open the window before holding out his hand for Serenity, helping her over the sill before clambering out himself. Yugi brought up the rear, acting as the guard.

The vines that had grown on the outside of the house helped them down, the three of them huddling in the shadows before sprinting through the thin barrier of trees that separated the house from the open clearing that stood between it and the hospital. Yami lagged behind the others, his body still trying to function after his out of body experience. He should have just stayed behind for a while like the doctor had said, but he couldn't leave Yugi and Serenity to do this by themselves. He coughed again, looking up to see that Yugi had slowed down, the reaper wrapping an arm around his waist to help him along.

The three stumbled out of the overgrown grass and to the hospital, quickly skirting around the side the building before they could find a door, but that was enough time for Vivian to begin to make her way through the small field, the beam from her flashlight giving her away. Yami took the lead, leaving Serenity to clutch the urn as they walked through the halls of the hospital. He raised an arm to block his nose and mouth, trying not to cough in the dusty hallways.

He gave Yugi a sideways glance, watching as the reaper reluctantly shrunk his scythe back down. The weapon wouldn't do them any good in the cramped hallways of the hospital, their only chance would be to outrun Vivian or hide. Either way Yami didn't like their odds. It was better to get this job done quickly.

Yami moved his arm away from his face, keeping his voice low. "Does anyone know where the chapel is?"

"No." Serenity paused as they came up to an intersection, glancing around. "It's not built like the new hospital and I don't see any signs that would help."

He heard Yugi mutter a curse, reaching out to rest a hand on the reaper's shoulder. "Then we'll split up for a bit, just to wander down these two halls. I don't know what else to do…"

"It's alright Yami." Serenity nodded at him before carefully sneaking down the hall to the left, Yami glancing over at Yugi before turning down the hall to the right, padding down it before shaking his head and turning around. He was willing to bet that it wasn't on this floor, but he didn't want to get caught on the upper levels with Vivian between them and the chapel.

He gave the stairs to a lower floor a single glance, sure that they led to the morgue. Yami turned around and shook his head at Yugi, the reaper grabbing his hand and tugging him back in the direction that Serenity had gone. He followed Yugi's lead, moving to stand beside him. "You alright?"

Yugi gave a curt nod, Yami reaching out to touch the reaper's face when someone walking their way caught his attention. Yami straightened up, his mouth dropping open in shock as two people walked past them, Yugi not even turning his head to look. He glanced back at the reaper before turning to stare at the people, surprised to see that the dusty corridor that they had just walked down was gone, the dust and grim scrubbed away to reveal a clean hall painted light green.

Yami let go of Yugi's hand, turning around and walking back down the hall, looking around in awe at the refurbished hospital before he shook his head. He didn't have time to look around this place; he had to figure out how to get the urn to the chapel. He took one last look around before turning back to where he had left Yugi, only to realize that he couldn't see him.

Yami gasped and stumbled back into the wall, holding onto it and hoping to feel paint crumble under his fingers, but there was nothing. The wall was smooth and slightly chilly, Yami turning around to run his hand down the wall. His hand shook as he straightened up, staring at where it rested against the green wall before turning around, taking a deep breath.

Somehow, he had gotten stuck in the past, at time when the hospital was still functioning. He didn't know how he was able to see this; he thought that he could just see ghosts. Yami shook his head, resisting the urge to beat it against the wall. He was already messed up, he didn't need to mess himself up more. He turned away from the wall, walking quickly back to the spot where he had let go of Yugi's hand. "Yugi? Yugi, where are you?"

"Doctor?" He turned around quickly at the voice, relaxing a fraction when he saw that it had just been two nuns. The two women moved to talk to one of the doctors, the man looking a bit stressed as he stopped. "Sorry for bothering you, but where's the chapel?"

"Chapel? On the third floor, right next to the nurse's station." The doctor hesitated for a moment. "I'll get someone to take you there."

Yami automatically stepped aside to let an orderly pushing a cart pass, glancing up towards the staircase. If he had the urn with him, he could just run up to the third floor and get the deed done, but he had handed it to Serenity in case he had slowed down the other two. Yami cursed, inching towards the stairs. While he was trapped in this place, he could at least scout out where the chapel was. Then they wouldn't have to blindly stumble around while they were being chased by Vivian.

"Hey orderly…orderly. Orderly, are you deaf?" Yami turned on the stairs to look down at the doctor, noticing that the orderly he had let by was now stopped in the middle of the hallway. Yami frowned and walked down a few steps, looking between the doctor and the young man. "Hey, moron."

The orderly twitched at the insult, yanking the white sheet off of his cart to reveal a shotgun. Yami started back, hitting the wall as he watched the man turn around, recognizing his face. Everyone in Fairwater knew the face of Johnny Bartlett.

Johnny turned around, holding the shotgun comfortable in his hands as he stared at the doctor. "I guess that makes you number one."

Yami scrambled to press himself back against the wall, flinching as he heard the shotgun go off, his eyes snapped back open as he felt someone shaking him, letting out a breath of relief as he saw Yugi and Serenity looking down at him. He took the hand that Yugi offered to pull himself up, all three of them freezing as they heard a shot from inside the hospital, Yugi glancing nervously up at the stairs before looking back at Yami.

"What happened?" Serenity inched closer to him, lowering her voice to a whisper. "You just started wandering around there."

"Must be the hospital." The two looked at Yugi, the reaper shifting uncomfortably, before shrugging. "Yami can see ghosts; it makes sense that he can see parts of what happened in the past. He's more in tune with the emotions here than I am…but it's still just a trick of the mind."

Yami took a deep breath to calm himself. He could think about the greater implications of that moment when they were all safe. He shook his head before stepping away from the wall, taking the urn from Serenity's hands. "The chapel is on the third floor, next to the nurse's station."


	13. The Last Night of Sadness

** Chapter Twelve: The Last Night of Sadness **

Yami peered around the corner of the third floor, glancing around for any signs of Vivian before walking out into the open, clutching the urn to his chest. He could feel Yugi's hand on his back, encouraging him onward and providing him the reminder of which world was real. He swallowed nervously, not looking forward to the next time that he was thrown into the past. If this kept happening, he would have to ask the others to go on without him, he would just slow them both down. But he didn't like the thought of being left behind to act as a distraction for Vivian.

He had already died once today, he didn't want to repeat the experience.

Serenity slipped ahead of him to check one hallway, coming back quickly and shaking her head. Yami nodded and turned to walk down the next hall, freezing as it went back to being green and clean again for a moment before he stopped himself. He shook his head and handed the urn to Serenity before walking forward again. At least this time he had a warning. Sometime soon, he would be distracted by images of the past.

The hand on his back dropped away for a moment, Yugi turning to stare towards the window. Yami reached back for the reaper, earning a shudder as his hand touched Yugi's shoulder. "What is it?"

"Someone else is here."

"Vivian?"

"No." Yugi narrowed his eyes. "That agent."

"Can you tell where Vivian is?"

Yugi glanced over at Serenity and shook his head. "I could tell you that she was in this building and that's about it. I'm not that useful here."

Serenity gave him a long look before walking away again, Yami inching forward before jerking, watching all of the walls fade to green. He thought he heard Yugi curse before he lost sight of the two of them, stumbling forward to avoid another doctor as the man was shot down. He swallowed and hopped awkwardly over the body, trying not to step in the blood that was pooling around the man.

Yami carefully picked his way down the hall, hoping that he would see a sign or a clue that could help them. He just heard the sound of screaming, coming to a stop as he watched people running towards him, automatically pressing himself up against the wall to avoid being trampled. Even then the people passed right through him. Yami sucked in a quick breath, glancing around, his eyes widening as his gaze landed on a figure walking down the hall.

It was Vivian, the fifteen-year-old Vivian who had taken so much joy in killing these people with her boyfriend. She was holding a knife in her hands, blood still dripping off the end as she strolled towards him. Yami stepped away from the wall, backing down the hallway and hoping that he would run into someone and the shock would jolt him out of this.

"Yami!" He was grabbed by someone, pulled away a second before someone lunged at him. Yami stumbled into the wall again, staring at Noa Kaiba as the agent tried to get to his feet. "Yami, come on!"

He nodded, turning and running after the others as they raced through the halls, hearing Noa rushing after him. Yami cursed under his breath, reaching to the side to send the screens that were propped up on the walls crashing down behind them. While the noise would draw Vivian, it was worth it for the time it would cost Noa. The agent would just slow them down or try to drag him back down to the jail and Yami didn't think that Noa knew about Vivian.

Yami ducked under a collapsed doorframe before taking a sharp turn, hearing Yugi run off in a different direction, realizing seconds later that he was alone. He glanced back over his shoulder before slowing down, panting for breath. He had to keep his head and not panic. He was sure that the others were finding places to hide until they could regroup, so that meant that he should stay close. Yami swallowed and walked forward, freezing at the sound of laughter echoing down the hall in front of him.

Vivian was coming.

He ducked into the nearest room, quickly grabbing a blanket from one of the beds before sliding under another, pressing himself back up against the wall and holding the blanket up in front of him, hoping that it would look lumpy enough to have been propped up there by something.

Footsteps announced Vivian's arrival, Yami turning his head to the side to see out a small hole in the blanket, watching as the crazy woman turned to stare at the other side of the room only to back into a bed. Vivian wiped around and the walls were back to their clean state.

Fifteen-year-old Vivian shot the person in the bed beside him before turning and shoot the one in the bed that he was under. Yami forced himself not to flinch back as a hand still cradling a rosary danged over the bed, the cross at the end clacking against the floor. He swallowed, hand tightening on the blanket that wasn't there. He was sure that this Vivian couldn't see him, but the one from the present day could spot him at any minute, and he would never know until the bullet hit him.

Johnny walked into the room, still dressed as an orderly, although his uniform now had splatters of blood on it. He walked up to his girlfriend, wrapping his arms around her. Immediately, Vivian melted into his embrace, laughing and looking up at him with a smile.

Something knocked against the bed that he was under, Yami startled back into the present. He could see the edge of Vivian's leg, praying to God that she didn't check under the bed for him. He saw her move closer out of the corner of his eye, swallowing before glancing back towards the door, surprised to see that the past Vivian was still there, except she had moved away from Johnny to stand next to the bed that he was under, leaning over to do something to the victim.

"N-now hold on, son." Yami turned his head slightly to see the old man shuffling towards Johnny, Vivian straightening up and turning to look at the old man as well. "The police are on their way."

Johnny seemed to consider what the man said for a moment before turning around. "How many, baby?"

"Eleven."

"Eleven?" Johnny's eyes widened as he laughed, Vivian stepping out of the way so Yami could see who was talking. His jaw dropped open as he found himself staring at Henry Saint-Claire, the old man backing away slowly as Johnny swung the shotgun in his direction. "Let's see if we can beat Starkweather."

Henry began to scream, the sound drowned out by another, higher pitched scream and a clatter. Yami was jolted back to the present by the sound, remaining perfectly still as Vivian ran out of the room, only then daring to lower the blanket and crawl out from under the bed.

He took a deep breath, regretting it a moment later as he inhaled dust. Yami leaned over, trying to muffle his coughs. A hand landed on his back, Yami glancing over to find Serenity giving him a nervous smile, plucking at the back of his shirt to encourage him to keep moving. "Come on."

Yami stared at her empty hands, swallowing before straightening up. "Where's the urn?"

"Yugi has it." Serenity walked over to the door before motioning him onward, Yami falling into step with her. "He found one of those old elevators and hid in it. I couldn't get in fast enough with Noa chasing me, so I passed if off and ran, hoping that I would be able to come around again."

"Then what was that noise?"

Serenity blushed. "I pushed him down the stairs. He didn't fall far, but it was enough to deter him."

"Thanks. That probably saved my life." Yami didn't explain further, walking quickly to where he could see Yugi peering out of the elevator, the reaper smiling and opening the grating to pass the urn to him. "Here, the chapel is just ahead. I'll stay here so we have an escape ready."

Yami nodded, taking the urn and creeping forward, Serenity at his back. He hesitated, looking back at her before motioning for her to stay. "I don't want you getting caught in whatever happens, alright?"

She glared at him, but stayed put, Yami smiling at her before creeping forward again, glancing down the hall and finding himself looking at the stairs. If they had taken that second hallway when they had come up here, they would have found the chapel more quickly. He bit back a curse, moving as silently as he could over the old floor boards and towards the chapel door, staring at the wood that had been nailed over the door.

There was one break in the barricade, Yami peering through it before relaxing. The entire aisle of the church was bathed in a soft blue light, the light getting stronger the closer to the front it got. He would have plenty of time to dispose of the ashes. Although, to be safe, he wanted to be standing right at the alter as he did it. Yami nodded to himself and turned around, looking for something that would help him break through the rotting wood. He spotted a wooden cross, walking towards it and absently reaching out to settle a statue of Mary as he passed.

He stumbled as a board broke under his foot, quickly stepping to the side to avoid falling all the way through. He gave the hole one last wary look before setting the urn down on the bench. The cross was propped up against the wall just a few steps away. It would be the noisy way of getting in, but he was sure that Vivian would give up the fight as soon as Johnny was gone for good.

Yami knelt on the ground, checking to see if the cross was holding anything up before lifting it, freezing at the sound of somebody walking into the room. He snatched up a smaller piece of wood and turned around, expecting to see Vivian.

Noa Kaiba smiled back at him, holding the urn as he backed away towards the stairs shaking his head. "Let me guess, getting the ashes to a holy place? You are so predictable, Yami."

Yami glanced around before stepping forward, walking around the hole and holding out his hand. "Give that to me, Noa."

"We could make a deal." Noa gave him a smile. "You could stand trial for what you did and I'll give you this to let you live out one more fantasy as a hero. How about that?"

Yami hesitated, staring at the government agent before shaking his head. "I'm innocent."

"Someone has to take the fall for this."

"How about you give me the urn and I'll tell you who's really killing people?"

Noa stared at him before giving a short bark of laughter and twisting the top of the run open. Yami lunged forward as Noa tipped the urn over, the ashes scattering on the ground. He thought he heard insane laughter, stumbling back a step as he stared at Noa. "What have you done?"

"Whoops." Noa glanced at the urn in his hands, turning it over before tossing it to the side. "I find you pathetic, Yami. You're willing to let someone else take the fall for you, all so you can carry out your existence here. And why are you here doing this? Is this to somehow make you feel better about the people you've killed?"

"Shut up."

"No, I want to know the truth. I deal with your kind of psychopath nearly every week and I want to know what goes on in those silly little heads of yours."

Yami shook his head, staring at the wood in his hands. Rushing Noa now sounded good, especially now that they had to get out of here before Vivian or Johnny found them. He didn't know what they would do now that both of them were loose again, but he was sure that Yugi would have a plan. But it wouldn't take a minute to hit Noa over the head and make sure that the government agent wouldn't follow him. He sighed, changing the sound into a laugh. "You are such an asshole."

Noa seemed to be proud of the insult, drawing himself up. "Yes, I am. But at least I'm well prepared."

The gun was out and had been fired faster than Yami could process that Noa had a gun. Another shot was fired, hitting the same spot.

Yami screamed in pain, dropping the piece of wood and stumbling back, turning around and clutching his left arm. He felt blood seep out of the wound, pressing against it to try and stop the bleeding. He stumbled forward another step catching himself before he stepped into the hole in the floor, staring at it as he tried to regain his balance, tipping his head to the side as he heard Noa walking towards him. "Turn around. I want to see your face when you realize that you've been lying to yourself."

He coughed, looking up as he saw a light bobbing closer. Yami felt a smile cross his face, glancing down at the hole in front of him and then looking back up as Vivian came running around the corner. He gave her a moment to recognize him, turning around as she fumbled to bring the shotgun up to the proper firing position. As he turned, he saw Noa smirk, the government agent raising his gun again.

Then Yami stepped back.

His body tilted backwards as he stepped into the hole, his foot going through the floor even as he fell back. He watched the look of surprise on Noa's face as he got away, replaced with pain as the shotgun slug hit him in the head. Noa slumped against the chapel barricade blood smearing over the boards. And then Yami was falling through the floor.

He grunted as the wood broke beneath him, barely having time to realize that he had fallen through the floor instead of coming to a stop. He fell through the second floor before he could begin to react. Yami had the chance to turn, trying to claw his way free only to twist his body so he hit the first floor with his good shoulder. The weakened boards couldn't take his weight either, Yami falling to the basement and rolling on impact, shouting in pain as he rolled onto his injured shoulder.

Yami gasped for air, looking around before trying to stand up, his legs giving out before he could gather them under his body. Everything hurt from his fall through the floors. He coughed and crawled forward, trying to push past the pain that had taken over his mind to think. All he knew was that he had to keep moving, escape from this place before he was caught.

He managed to crawl from the center of the hall towards the door to the morgue, his strength giving out there. Yami slumped to the floor; panting for breath and watching the dust swirl up in a small storm from the puffs of air. At the sound of laughter he looked up again, watching Vivian and Johnny race around the clean morgue, dodging around the tables filled with dead bodies.

Vivian was thrown on the empty examination table, laughing as Johnny crawled over her to crush her against him, the two kissing and smearing the blood from their victims and the table all over themselves. Yami forced back the bile that rose at that sight, letting himself go limp on the floor, closing his eyes and waiting for the sound of the couple's laughter to go away.

"Yami!" There was a mechanical whirring from down the hall followed by a thud. He opened one eye to stare down the hall at the elevator, watching as Yugi tried to pull the doors open, but they wouldn't move. "Shit!"

He heard someone rushing down the stairs, Serenity appearing a moment later and running over to where Yugi was, trying to pull the final door of the elevator open. "It's stuck."

"Doesn't matter. Help Yami."

She turned around and noticed Yami on the floor for the first time, gasping and running over to him. Yami tried to smile up at her, feeling Serenity running her hands over his back, probably searching for a break. "It's going to be alright, Yami. It's going to be-"

A scream caught their attention, Vivian appearing from another hallway. The woman rushed out and hit Serenity with the butt of the shotgun, Yami's eyes widening as he watched her fall to the ground. It was Serenity one moment and then it was Tèa.

He was back on Holloway Road on that day, watching Tèa fall to the ground as she was hit by something. He watched his wife claw at something holding her down, unable to move and trying to remember why. It had been the door; it wouldn't open right because it was stuck against a tree. The windshield was broken on her side, which is how Tèa had gotten out. She had crawled a bit away before waiting for him, like he'd asked. He wasn't sure if she could make it to the street all by herself.

The door wouldn't budge, no matter how Yami had thrown his weight against it, so he had been forced to watch as Tèa fought against the thing holding her down, staring as a black figure appeared over her, yanking its hand out of her heart a moment later. The figure turned to look at him, green and yellow eyes shinning before it shook the black cowl off, Yami finding himself staring at the ghost of Johnny Bartlett. Then Vivian emerged from the woods…

The light from the flashlight shining in his eyes brought him back to the present, Yami licking his lips and staring blearily up at Vivian and Johnny. "You killed her."

Johnny laughed, looping his arm around Vivian's waist and pulling her in to a hug. "You're next."

* * *

Serenity stared in horror as Yami fell through the floor, barely hearing Yugi shout out his name as she turned and ran. She had to get down to where Yami was; she was the only one with medical training. She heard the elevator moving as she ran; sure that Vivian would be after her since Yugi had the fast way down. Instead, she heard Vivian running away in a different direction. That made her sigh in relief. At least they would have the time to get Yami out of here before her next attack.

They would have to regroup and plan what to do now, although she was useless at this moment. Right now, she was running down the lists of things that she would need to check for or need to do to help Yami over and over again. Anything to keep her from dissolving into complete panic.

She clattered down the stairs to the morgue, glancing around before spotting Yugi. He looked up at her, yanking on the door to the elevator before shaking his head. She rushed over, throwing her weight against it in an attempt to pull it back, panting for breath after a few tries. Serenity stopped as she felt Yugi give her a small push, biting her lip and looking up at him. "It's stuck."

"Doesn't matter. Help Yami."

Serenity turned, noticing where Yami lay on the floor. She glanced up at the ceiling to see the hole that he had fallen through as she rushed over. She knelt on the floor, staring at his bleeding arm before forcing herself to begin to check for breaks. If they could get out of here with Yami running on his own, then they could move faster.

She thought she saw the beginnings of a smile from Yami, trying to smile back. "It's going to be alright, Yami. It's going to be-"

Her head jerked up at the sound of a scream, Serenity leaned back as Vivian rushed out of another hallway. Serenity had a moment to curse her idiocy before she was hit by the shotgun, falling over onto the floor. Of course Vivian would know the hospital better than she did, Vivian had lived here all of her life. Serenity groaned and went to sit up, stopped by Yami's soft gasp.

She turned to find him staring right through her, a look of horror on his face. He remained like that until Vivian turned the gun in his direction, shining the flashlight on Yami's face. He moved at that, staring up at Vivian. "You killed her."

Vivian just laughed and took better aim at his head, Serenity trying to get to her feet only to be pushed back down. She turned to look at the empty air above her, reaching up to push at it in the vain hope that whoever was holding her down would move. She didn't have much luck, twisting in the hold on her before reaching out for Vivian. If she could throw Vivian off balance… Her hand was yanked back as well, Vivian smiling at the thing on top of her before taking aim at Yami again and pulling the trigger.

Serenity winced, expecting to hear the shotgun fire and the sickening sound the bullet would have made as it had slammed into Yami's head at this close range, but there was nothing. She opened her eyes, seeing Vivian stare at the gun before screaming in rage, flipping the gun over to slam the end into Yami's wounded shoulder.

Yami rolled away from Vivian with a scream, Serenity going back to her struggles. Behind her, she could hear Yugi trying to get that door open again, mentally cheering him on. If it was just Vivian and Johnny down here, then Yugi could save Yami.

She turned to watch as Yami tried to get to his hands and knees, thrown to the ground as Vivian hit him again, the crazed woman moving fast enough to get the barrel of the shotgun under his chin, pressing it up against Yami's throat. She used that hold to haul Yami to his feet, smirking as he tried to pull the gun away from his neck, trying to throw Vivian from him. Serenity flinched as Vivian backed into a wall, using it to brace herself as she continued to pull on the gun, Yami still fighting against it.

Serenity felt tears begin to fall down her cheeks as Yami gasped for breath, her friend looking over to where Yugi was before he slumped forward, his hands slipping from the gun to dangle limply. Vivian smirked, keeping the pressure on for a moment more before tossing Yami to the side, staring at the body before giving it a kick.

"No!" Serenity wasn't sure if she had screamed or Yugi had screamed, turning back to her struggles. If she could get to him, then he could be saved. He had to be saved. She sobbed as she flipped over onto her back, clawing at the ground to try to move, but Johnny wouldn't let her. Serenity shot a glance over her shoulder, her eyes widening as she saw something flickering in and out of sight above her. And then the thing spoke.

"Ah, Viv, you didn't let him have the chance to scream out his lover's name. Baby, that just doesn't have style." Vivian blushed, but Johnny just laughed, Serenity watching him tip his head to the side before turning to look at Yugi. She found herself following his gaze, staring at Yugi.

The man was clinging to the grate of the door, his shoulders shaking as he sobbed. The sight made Johnny laugh, the ghost leaning forward to pin Serenity to the ground. "On the other hand, the other one didn't have time to scream out his name either." Yugi twitched at that, Johnny laughing. "Have I really done it this time, Yugi? Have I finally killed your balance? First Mana and now this one, I have to have done something. And you couldn't save either of th-"

A loud scream of rage filled the hallway, Serenity staring at Yugi as he screamed, the man suddenly surrounded by twisting tendrils of black. She felt Johnny jump from his place sitting on her, the ghost obviously as surprised by this. But she couldn't tear her eyes away from Yugi, watching as the black crashed over him before ripping through the metal, twisting and turning to form a creature, the black tendrils forming into a black cloak with a cowl. Skeletal hands emerged from the sleeves, one of them gripping a staff. The cowl jerked up, Serenity finding herself staring at angry purple eyes, the exact color of Yugi's eyes before the sharp snap of a blade echoed through the hallway.

Johnny laughed, standing up and pulling Serenity with him. He shoved her towards Vivian, turning to face Yugi. "Well now, this is interesting."

"Dartz."

"Took you long enough to figure it out." Johnny shivered, the body and face of Johnny Bartlett falling away to be replaced by a young man with long hair, bound back in a ponytail, with one green eye and one yellow eye. The image only lasted for a moment before Johnny was back, still smirking.

It looked like Johnny had something more to say, but Yugi was already moving, floating across the floor and turning the scythe in his hands. Johnny dodged out of the way, but Yugi didn't turn to face him, Serenity's eyes widening as he charged right for Vivian.

She ducked her head at the last moment, shivering as she heard the blade pass through flesh, Vivian's scream cut off abruptly. The hands that had held her loosened, Serenity whimpering and scrambling away from Vivian's body, watching the woman's head roll over the ground. She glanced over at Johnny, surprised to see him staring at the woman's body with a look of shock, taking the chance to scramble over to Yami.

She didn't get too far, Yugi turning to her and threatening with the scythe. Serenity backed off, shuffling to stand by the counter, watching as Yugi turned to face Johnny.

"Y-you killed her."

"And she didn't have time to scream her lover's name."

Johnny stared at Yugi, looking scared for the first time. He stumbled down the hall, Yugi floating after him, the blade of the scythe dripping blood. The sound seemed to annoy Yugi, the weapon giving a hard shake to throw the blood onto the walls. Then, his full attention was back on Johnny, the ghost stumbling down the hall. He didn't get another chance to speak, Yugi lunging forward and pushing the scythe into the ghost's body, Johnny screaming in pain as Yugi jerked the blade out, cutting Johnny neatly in half.

The ghost sagged to the floor, Yugi stooping to cut through Johnny again, before reaching into the mess of ectoplasm on the floor and picking up a tiny pulsing orb. Serenity watched Yugi consider it for a moment before crushing it in his hand, turning to face her.

Serenity gasped and pressed herself back against the counter, sobbing as Yugi leveled the scythe at her. "Save him."

She looked down at where Yami's body lay, shaking her head. "I can't. I can't."

"Save him or you will die."

She stared up into the purple eyes that blazed under the cowl, nodding and quickly walking over to Yami, kneeling by his body. The hair on the back of her neck rose as Yugi moved closer to her, Serenity not daring to glance up at him as she carefully turned Yami's body over, shivering at the blank look in her friend's eyes. She reached up to close them, just so she wouldn't have to feel their stare before looking at Yami's throat, staring at the bruising there. "Yugi…I-"

Serenity cut herself off as Yugi stared at her, swallowing nervously before shaking her head. "I can't. Even if I could, he wouldn't survive here. He would need something to help him breathe while he healed and-"

"Take him to the hospital then."

"But his throat..." She trailed off as the scythe was pointed at her, Serenity nodding and leaning over to pick up Yami.

She struggled to stand at first, holding him close to her and waiting for Yugi to go first. He glared at her before moving out of the way, taking up a position behind her as she walked towards the stairs. Serenity tried to hold back her tears, not wanting to blind herself while she was holding Yami. One misstep could send them tumbling to the ground, and she wasn't sure of Yugi now, whatever he had become.

The trip back to the police cruiser was made in silence. Serenity clutching Yami to her for dear life as she listened to Yugi moving behind her, waiting for the strike that would kill her. Thankfully, Yugi held himself back, Serenity breathing a sight of relief at that. But Yugi did nothing to help, standing behind her as she carefully put Yami in the backseat of the car, settling him in before running around to the front and starting up the car.

She didn't see Yugi the entire ride back to the hospital, Serenity busy wiping the tears from her cheeks. Eventually she would have to explain this to her superiors, but she didn't think she could without sounding crazy. Serenity bit her lip, forcing herself to drive a bit over the speed limit, part of her hoping that Joey would catch her and take over from here. She was sure that her brother couldn't see what Yugi had become; he would be able to work without being paralyzed in fear.

Serenity took a deep breath when she pulled up to the hospital, surprised to see the front room cleared of people. She shivered, going around to the back doors to get Yami and walking into the hospital. The quiet reminded her too much of when she and Yami had come here earlier. Had Noa called another alarm while they were gone? Serenity glanced around before slipping into a vacant room, quickly hooking up Yami to the equipment there before staring at him.

Worrying about the hospital staff could wait until later, she had other things to do. Like figure out how she was going to keep Yami's windpipe from collapsing again, or how to bring him back to life period.

She jumped as she heard the door open, her eyes widening as Yugi floated in, staring at the scythe that was still in his hand. "W-what did you do with the people here?"

"Nothing." Yugi tipped his head to look at her. "Everyone is fine."

"Then why weren't there people in the front."

"There were. You just didn't see them." Serenity stared at him as Yugi moved around to Yami's side, figuring that she would force a full explanation from him later. She slumped, sitting on the end of the bed that Yami was on.

"I can't bring him back to life."

"Can you help him remain alive?"

"If his windpipe doesn't collapse, then yes." Serenity shook her head, turning to look at Yugi. "But even then that's a big if. He's dead, Yugi, there's no question about it."

Yugi glared at her before reaching to press his fingers against Yami's throat. For a moment, they remained there and then Yugi's hand was sinking into Yami's throat. Serenity stood up quickly from where she sat, watching as Yugi work, seeing the skin bulge slightly in places. Yugi worked his way around slowly, Serenity waiting for the moment when the windpipe would collapse again, surprised when it never came.

She released her breath in a long sigh, glancing over at the machines before shaking her head. "It won't work."

"His soul knows the shape of his body." Yugi stared at Yami for a moment before brushing his skeletal fingers over Yami's chest. "We just have to encourage it."

Serenity let out a short cry of shock as Yugi plunged his hand into Yami's chest, remembering all too well the descriptions of how the people had died, their hearts squeezed until they gave out. She slapped a hand over her mouth as Yugi glared up at her, the reaper turning back to his work inside Yami. Serenity stared at him before inching forward, curious as to what he was doing. But Yugi didn't explain, he just looked between Yami and the machine, waiting for a few moments before drawing his hand out and floating back. She glanced over at the heart monitor, waiting for any signs of life.

She was about to turn away from the machine and beg for her life when she heard the first faint beep, her mouth dropping open as she watched the line begin to move in its normal pattern, turning back to Yami to see him struggling to breathe. Serenity laughed, watching her friend breath. She could even forget for a moment that Yami was having oxygen given to him through a tube, he was alive.

There was a thud from the other side of the bed Serenity looking up as Yugi fell to his knees, the black cowl that he wore and the skeletal fingers disappeared, leaving the man that she had met just a day ago. He didn't even seem to notice her presence, staring at Yami for a long moment before leaning on the bed with a sob of relief, reaching out to hold one of Yami's hands.

Serenity watched them for a moment before ducking her head to walk out of the room. She would leave the two alone and go to talk to the hospital staff. There had to be a way to explain her behavior. And she had to call Joey to get the police out to the old hospital. Although, how she was going to explain the authorities was beyond her. Serenity sighed, pushing a strand of hair out of her face and stopping at the squeak that came from the room, turning to stare at Yugi as he stood up carefully, still holding Yami's hand. "Serenity?"

She glanced around before nodding and stepping forward. "Y-Yugi?"

Yugi flinched at the tremor in her voice, turning to face her and finally letting go of Yami's hand. "There's one more thing I have to do. Could…could you watch Yami for me?"

Serenity hesitated before giving a slow nod, making her way back over to the bedside. She pulled up a chair, watching as Yugi lingered over Yami, seeming reluctant to leave. He met her gaze, giving her a small smile before leaning over to kiss Yami on the forehead before backing away, "I'll be back soon."

"And I'll be here." Yugi gave a sharp nod before turning and walking out of the room. Serenity turned to watch him go, staring at the man before shivering and slumping in the chair. She didn't know what had happened back in the old hospital, when Yugi had suddenly became a monster. Some part of her didn't want to think about it, to just place it in the back of her mind and never visit it again. But she had to know about this, about why she could see ghosts suddenly and how Yugi had done the impossible of bringing Yami back to life.

She sighed and leaned forward, placing her chin in her hand and staring down at the man lying in the hospital bed, watching his chest rise and fall. Serenity shook her head and smiled, reaching out with her free hand to brush her fingers across Yami's hand. "You're a lucky man, Yami. He cares a lot about you."

There was no answer from Yami, not that Serenity expected one. She expected that he would be out for a long while. She glanced around, listening to the steady pulse of the heart monitor before jumping as something vibrated in her pocket. Serenity frowned and pulled out her phone, berating herself for forgetting that she had it on her during the chase through the hospital. Then again, it wouldn't have done her again good except for a one time weapon.

She flipped the phone open and held it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Serenity?" Joey sounded worried, Serenity sitting up with a frown. "Are you alright? I haven't heard from you or Yami since… Is that a heart monitor?"

Serenity glanced over at the machine, glaring at it before taking a deep breath. "Just come over to the hospital, Joey, I have some things to explain to you."

* * *

Alister jumped as the door to the small house they had been hiding in slammed against the wall. He heard Raphael jump out of his seat as well, the two of them staring at the shape in the doorway. The man walked in slowly, the black coat around him settling down the further he walked in, but Alister couldn't take his eyes away from the scythe that the man held, not until Raphael spoke. "Yugi?"

Then Alister recognized the small man that they had picked up from about three days ago. He straightened up, flashing Raphael a smile before taking a step forward, stopped in his tracks by the glare Yugi shot him. "You lied to me."

"W-what?" Alister took a step back, raising his hands as Yugi pointed the scythe at the two of them.

"You said you were reapers, and you aren't. I've checked. So, what are you?"

Alister looked over at Raphael, sidling over to the larger man and lowering his voice to a whisper. "Listen, that Johnny kid never said anything about-"

"You mean Dartz." Alister froze at the name, staring at Yugi as the reaper walked forward. "You must know that Johnny and Dartz are the same, after all, he's the reason why you are here. I've figured that much out, but I'm giving you this chance to come clean."

They remained silent; intimidated by the weapon that Yugi was holding and the glare on his face. Yugi stared at them for a moment before taking a step back, never relaxing his guard. "Fine then, I'll tell you what I know and you'll fill me in on what I get wrong.

"I know that you two aren't reapers, you're not in any of our records. I know that the reapers that once were in charge of the area disappeared, probably killed by you. And I know that Dartz escaped from the afterlife. Did he take you with him? Or were you already here?"

Raphael stepped forward, Alister lunging to grab the back of his shirt, trying to tug him back. "Don't say anything! What if Johnny comes back to-"

"Dartz is dead. I killed him myself. Now," they both flinched away as the scythe was pointed at them again, "I suggest that you start talking."

Raphael glared at Alister before pulling away from him, Alister crouching against the wall and shivering. He saw Yugi raise an eyebrow, obviously waiting for the explanation to begin. "Dartz told us that there was a way to escape from the afterlife and asked if we were willing to take it. We agreed, but we were told that we had to wait, Dartz went ahead to be reincarnated as someone else, he said something about the reapers being after him."

Yugi gave a curt nod, Raphael straightening up. "We didn't know what he would do, so we waited until we found ourselves pulled into this world. We came to staring at two dead bodies. Apparently, all that was needed to escape was the death of someone in the world…and the fact that our names were carved in their foreheads. After that, we stuck close to Dartz, just in case, but decided to get out of town when he started going crazy. Three deaths wasn't enough, he wanted more. We were long gone when he went on his killing spree and got himself killed again."

"Then who brought him back?"

"Vivian." Alister ducked his head, staring at the floor as he spoke. "She managed to contact him in the afterlife, and he didn't bother to try and get a real body this time, he just slipped out. We always thought that it was impossible."

"So did I."

Alister stared at Yugi, his mouth dropping open at the thought of a reaper not knowing about what was going on in the afterlife before he shut it with a snap, clearing his throat. "We only came back here after Maximillion went insane and killed all of the reapers here. We disposed of the bodies and posed as the reapers after killing Maximillion and it was the perfect cover until Dartz got out of control. He wouldn't stop killing, so we hid and helped you when you came."

"You say that like it should count for something." Yugi stepped forward, Raphael backing up again, the reaper glaring at the two of them. "You say that like I should just forgive you for what you've done."

"We haven't done anything!"

The scythe swung back to Alister, the dull edge of the blade hovering at his throat, but the threat was still there. "You encouraged a killer to come out into the world. Because of you forty people were killed and four ghosts were completely destroyed." Alister's mouth dropped open in shock, Yugi continuing on. "Because of you my balance was almost taken from me. That alone gives me the right to do this. But, even worse, the same reaper destroyed the one person who could have been my balance one hundred and sixty-seven years ago. You'll find that I have every right to do this."

"But you won't." Alister looked over at Raphael, watching as the blonde man smirked down at Yugi. "You won't because then you'll be just like him."

"No. I won't be just like him." Yugi took a deep breath, switching his grip on the scythe so the sharp edge was facing them. "Because I won't enjoy myself; I'll hate it."

Alister felt Raphael tense beside him, the two having a moment to stare at Yugi before the reaper struck.


	14. Epilogue: All Objects More Lovely

** Epilogue: All Objects More Lovely **

Joey hesitated in his report, staring at something over her shoulder. Serenity frowned and turned around; smiling as Yugi cautiously entered the hospital room, waving at the both of them before making a beeline for Yami. She heard Joey chuckle at that before he went back to what he had been saying before. "We found a bunch of stuff in the attic, everything you can imagine to contact someone after they've died. We found a bunch of Ouija boards, so that must have been what worked for her. But we did find that knife and Vivian's body…I don't know how we're going to write the official report on this."

"Just say she went crazy and believed herself to be possessed." The two turned to stare at Yugi. Yugi just shrugged, leaning forward to pull the sheet further up on Yami's body. "Most people would believe it from what you guys know about her and it's not that far from the truth."

"And what is the truth?" Joey leaned forward, looking between the two. "I just know that Vivian went crazy and killed people. I don't know the whole story or why my best bud ended up in the hospital."

Yugi didn't look over at them, Serenity throwing a glare in his direction before sighing. "I'll tell it to you sometime, Joey, I promise. Just as long as it's after you write up the official report."

The police officer grumbled but stood up, bidding them all a good day before walking out of the room. Serenity sighed and slumped back in her chair, allowing herself a small smile. Everything had turned out alright in the end, surprising for what had felt like three days out of a horror movie. She shifted in her seat, turning to stare at Yugi and Yami, shivering as she remembered what Yugi had turned into just hours earlier. She cleared her throat, Yugi just tipping his head to show that he heard her. "What happened? When Yami died, what happened?"

Yugi glanced up at her before sitting back, his eyes closing as he thought something over. "You probably don't want to know and I probably can't tell you."

"But you're going to anyway."

Yugi opened one eye and gave her part of a smile. "That sounds like an order."

"It can be." Serenity straightened up in her chair. "Because I think I have a right to know. After all, my husband is dead, I've been attacked by the ghost of a murderer, I've seen my brother's best friend in this hospital twice and now I can see ghosts."

"Oh." Yugi stared at her for a long moment before leaning forward, resting his elbows against his knees. "Alright Serenity, but I warned you. This is going to sound like something out of a book."

He sighed, running a hand through his hair, staring at the ground. Serenity shifted forward, having to lean even further out to even hear him as Yugi began to speak. "I'm about two hundred forty-seven thousand years old, give or take a few years. Honestly, I lost count. I died when I went hunting with the rest of the men from my clan. A deer's antler went right through my stomach and I died about an hour later in my mother's arms."

Yugi shivered at that, reaching up to wipe tears from his eyes before continuing. "So, Seto found me and I agreed to help him and became a reaper."

"R-reaper?" Serenity shivered, leaning back in her chair. "Like with the scythe and everything?"

Yugi raised his eyebrow, giving her a half smile before nodding. "Yeah, you saw it earlier. But that's what I am…what I really look like. This is just me trying to fit in with the rest of the world. Unlike ghosts, unless I look like that, I'm visible to every one, and I don't want to stay like that. I prefer to pretend that I'm still alive, sad as it is. But that's what I've been since I've died."

"So…you take people's souls when they die."

"Not exactly. There too many people in the world for that. I just go to the ones whose souls get stuck; we get the lists from the higher ups in the afterlife. But that's as organized as it gets." Yugi shrugged and glanced back at Yami. "That's about it actually."

Serenity raised her eyebrow, watching as Yugi settled back, the reaper still holding Yami's hand. There were still some things that Yugi hadn't told her, but Serenity was sure that he would just dodge around the questions. He was obviously too distracted with Yami at the moment. She settled back, staring at the two before shaking her head. But there was still one thing that she wanted to know. "So…I can see ghosts now?"

"Traumatic experience." Yugi didn't even look up from Yami. "It tends to change your perceptions. You should be fine though, just try not to speak aloud in public."

She nodded slowly, staring at the two before smiling and standing up. "I have to help my brother with his report. I'll be back to check on you two later."

Yugi must have waved good-bye to her, but she didn't see it, rushing out of the room to find a quiet place to sit and digest all the information that had been given to her.

* * *

It was brilliantly white, the glow almost obscuring all the other colors. Yami turned in place, his mouth open in awe as he stared at the towers of clouds and the blue sky. He couldn't remember how he had gotten here; just that he hadn't been able to breathe before he had come here. Yami let out a low whistle, turning in place.

"It's quite a place, isn't it?" He jumped at the familiar voice, turning around and staring at Solomon as the old miner approached. The tattered and stained clothes that the miner had worn in his life were gone, replaced with a clean suit that Solomon didn't seem to like at all. He kept tugging at the collar as he approached, giving Yami a smile. "I always feel like the damn thing is trying to choke me, but it is a special occasion."

"Yeah…special…"

He was giving a solid smack on his shoulder, Solomon glaring at him before straightening up. "Don't go mumbling on me now, boy."

"Sorry." Yami yelped as Solomon gave him a friendly smack before turning him around to face the towers of clouds. "Solomon, is this Heaven?"

"Yes and no." At Yami's confused look, Solomon sighed and reached up to tap the side of Yami's head. "You make it up in here. If you've been good, you imagine clouds and perfection and if you're bad, you imagine torment and pain. Of course, we're split up so none of us go wandering around into other places, but it's basically all in your head…or what's left of your head now that you've joined us. And we've got some people very excited to meet you."

Yami allowed himself to be towed along, trying to look everywhere at once. To his surprise, paradise seemed to be sparsely populated, stopping when they had walked for a while and there was no one to be seen. "Where is everyone?"

"They're staying back for a bit, letting you have this little meet and greet before we toss you out."

"W-what?"

"You don't belong here with us." Yami spun around, Duke laughing at the look of surprise on his face. The man pushed away from the spire of clouds that he was leaning against, Tomoya rushing over to Yami. Duke reached out to pat Yami's shoulder. "It was a close call, man, but you made it. You're just here because you want to see us and what is death without the illusion of seeing into the world beyond."

"I…I died?"

"Yes, and you were saved." Duke laughed again, turning to shout to someone behind him. "Was he always this slow?"

"Not my Yami." His mouth dropped open as he watched Tèa walk towards him, the woman smoothing out her long blue evening gown. "He was the sharpest boy I knew."

"T- Tèa?"

She smiled and nodded, Duke and Tomoya stepped aside so she could stand in front of him. "Hello Yami." She hissed, noticing the cuts and bruises on his face, reaching up to brush her fingers over them. "What happened to you?"

"Tèa!" Yami pulled her into a hug, ignoring her squeak of surprise. He didn't care where he was or who was around him, he got to hug one of his best friends again. He didn't even realize that he was crying until he spoke, his knees giving out and the both of them sinking to the cloud that they were standing on. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Hush…"

"I didn't mean to… I should have done something before, and then you would be alive. Or I should have…I should have-" He was stopped by a finger resting on his lips, Tèa smiling as she tipped his chin up so she could look at him.

"Don't be. I'm the one who should be sorry." She reached back to push a strand of brown hair behind her ear. "I never got to thank you, Yami."

"Thank me?"

"Yes. You took care of me for all those years and you married me, even though you didn't have to. You just wanted the best for me and I never thanked you for it. I may have had cancer and was dying slowly but, damn it, those were the best years of my life. So thank you, and stop blaming yourself for what happened, it was a quicker way to go than to die slowly by cancer." She paused, brushing the bangs back from his face as she shook her head. "But you blamed yourself, didn't you? My poor boy."

He clung to her as he sobbed, barely noticing that the others around him were backing away, disappearing into the clouds around them. All he cared about was the feeling of Tèa in his arms, her hair brushing across his face as she leaned over him and held him close, rocking him until he had spent all of his tears. Only then did she tip his face back up again and give him a kiss on the forehead. "I can't call you mine anymore, can I?"

"You can…always…"

"I know, but I want you to be happy, Yami. You spent so much of your life caring for me when you should have been doing something to make you happy. So, for you, go and find someone. And, for once, just be happy." He started to stutter out an explanation, stopped as she kissed him on the lips, just a quick chaste kiss, the kind that they had shared their entire married lives together. "Shut up, and be happy, Yami. Find yourself a nice guy, you deserve it. It's not your fault that I fell in love with you." She made a playful swipe as his shoulder. "Darn you for being so handsome and nice and then deciding that you liked men."

Yami smiled, sighing and resting his head on her shoulder. "I love you, never as I should have, but I do."

"I know and I don't care." Tèa pressed a kiss to his forehead. "I love you too. Now go."

She let go of him, Yami feeling himself floating away as she stood up. He smiled and stood up, watching her as everything else faded around him, leaving only her and the glow surrounding her. Tèa smiled at him and raised a hand to wave, Yami returning the motion before everything went black.

He wasn't sure how long he remained unconscious, not sure that any time had even passed. Whether it was mere seconds or eternities, he found himself struggling towards consciousness, annoyed by the steady beep of something close to him. Yami groaned, immediately regretting making the sound, it had hurt. Blearily, he opened his eyes, staring at the machine that was beeping and watching the line that showed his heart rate without real understanding. It was only when he felt something tighten around his hand that he turned his head and smiled. "Yugi."

The reaper smiled back at him, leaning forward and nearly clambering up on the bed to get close. Yami raised his head slightly before letting it rest back against the pillow; Yugi taking the invitation to rest his forehead against Yami's the two of them smiling at each other. Yugi used his free hand to wipe the tears that were trailing down his cheeks, Yami watching him with worry. "I thought that we had lost you."

"No." Yami coughed, wincing as it hurt his throat. It would be easier to just not talk, but Yugi needed to hear his voice. Yugi had lost him twice within a short period of time; it was a wonder that the reaper was even sane. Yami swallowed and tried again. "I had a few people to visit with before I could come back, to make sure that they were safe."

Yugi stared at him for a moment before tipping his head to the side. "Tèa?"

"Yeah." Yami tried to sit up, Yugi pushing him back down. The reaper settled on the bed beside him, still holding his hand. Yami turned his head to rest against Yugi's thigh with a sigh. "She told me to stop moping around."

Yugi laughed. "Good advice. I wish I could have met her."

"I think she would have liked you. You two could have tormented me." Yugi laughed at that, Yami yawning and closing his eyes. "She was always teasing me…"

"You poor thing." Yugi muffled his laughter, shifting slightly but not getting up from the bed. "Rest now, it's all taken care of."

"Right." He felt Yugi tense, opening one eye to look up at the reaper, noticing that Yugi was thinking hard about something. Yami shifted so the back of his head knocked against Yugi's side, the move bringing the reaper's attention back to him. "What are you thinking about?"

"What happens after you get out of here?"

"Oh."

Yugi nodded slowly, glancing at him before staring at the doors. "Would you consider coming with me?"

"With you? Back to Japan?"

"You don't have to if you don't want to." Yugi looked back at him, smiling and trying to hide the disappointment in his eyes. "But I was just hoping…"

"What would a reaper be without his balance?" Yugi stared at him, Yami dragging himself up slightly so he was pressed more against Yugi. "Give me time to get better and sell my house. Then I'll come with you."

"Really?"

"Promise." Yami turned his head to kiss Yugi's arm, not sure that the reaper felt it through the long sleeved shirt that he wore. He settled back down onto the pillows, feeling Yugi bury a hand in his hair and gently rub his scalp. Yami hummed in thanks before slipping off to sleep, cuddling up against Yugi.

* * *

 **Two Years Later**

Yugi turned at the familiar voice that shouted his name, standing on his tiptoes to see through the crowd of people in the airport before smiling and waving at the group of people that were walking towards him. By his side, Sugoroku twisted slightly before turning his attention back to the gate.

Ryou was the one to break into a jog to reach Yugi first, nearly jumping in place with his excitement. "Is he here yet?"

"Plane is just pulling in." Sugoroku glanced at the rest of the people that were coming up, shaking his head. "Between you and Yugi, I don't know who's worse."

"Probably Yugi."

Yugi glared at his friend before turning around to stare at the gate. It wasn't his fault that he was a bit eager. He had waited two years to see his balance again, their sporadic conversations on the phone not enough for him. He wanted to be able to hold his balance close and be sure that Yami was really there, and that he hadn't disappeared on him.

He yelped as Sugoroku grabbed his shoulder, forcing him to stand still. "Would you stop moving? I'm getting motion sick from just standing here with you."

"Respect your elders."

"Yeah, I will when you act it." Yugi stared at Sugoroku in shock, the elderly man winking at him before looking back at the gate, leaning over to one side before breaking into a smile. "Oh, I think I see him."

Yugi immediately stood up on his tiptoes, trying to see over the heads of the taller people, getting a glimpse of Yami as he slipped through the crowd. His balance navigated through the rush of people that were coming from the gate, spotting them easily and breaking into a run, dropping his bag on the floor by Ryou's feet before scooping up Yugi into a hug.

Yugi found that he couldn't stop laughing, clinging to Yami as the two spun in a circle before Yami let the reaper down, not relinquishing the hold that he had on Yugi's hand. "Sorry about the wait."

"It's fine." Yugi shot a glare at Sugoroku as the elderly man grumbled, reaching down to pick up Yami's carry-on. "I'm just glad that you're here."

Yami nodded, sticking his free hand into his pocket and looking at the ground behind Yugi. "Care to introduce me?"

"Ah, yes. This is Seto, Kisara, Ryou and Bakura. They're the…group that helps out around here."

"Only three?"

"Three of the best." Yugi beamed at Yami before turning to Sugoroku. "And this is my son. Technically, there a lot of greats in there, but I basically raised him."

"Pleased to meet you." Sugoroku took Yami's hand and shook it before beginning to walk away from the gate. "Come on, Yugi, I have a shop to run and dinner won't cook itself. And I'm sure that Seto has more jobs for you to do."

Yugi winced, glancing over at Seto to see his boss smirking. Seto just shrugged, offering Kisara his arm as they turned to walk out of the airport. "I didn't get a break when I found my balance."

"Seto…"

"No, Yugi."

He pouted as he followed them out of the airport, brightening up when Yami put an arm over his shoulders. "I'll just have to wait up for you then?"

"Probably."

"Ah, that'll give me time to find the pictures from the wedding."

"Wedding?"

Yami stared at him before nodding. "Yeah, I told you about it remember? Joey and Mai?"

Yugi nodded, blushing as he realized that he had forgotten about it in the rush of work that had been waiting for him when he had gotten back to Domino. To his relief, Yami just smiled and pulled him into a tight hug. "I thought as much. Have things over here really been as bad as all of that?"

"No." Yugi ducked his head, his blush deepening. "It was just hard because you were so far away." He scrubbed a hand over his face, hoping that his blush would disappear. "I had gotten so used to having you around for those few days that…"

"Ah." Yami tipped his head to the side, resting it against Yugi's. "Well, I'm here now, and you can relax."

Yugi found himself doing just that, leaning against Yami and not caring about the amount of affection they were displaying in public. "Alright."

"And, when you get back tonight, I'll show you the pictures from the wedding. You'll find them hilarious." Yami chuckled to himself, turning his head to kiss Yugi's temple. "After the reception, Mai basically handed her shoes to Joey and then carried him into the car. The look on his face was priceless."

Yugi made a face. "I wish I could have been there." He shot a glare at Seto's back. "But I had to keep working over here."

"I wish you could have been there too, you could have been my date." Yugi's mouth dropped open at the phrasing, but Yami didn't seem to notice it. Of course, it could have just been a slip of the tongue, or a hint at what they could be to each other, aside from good friends. Yugi snapped his mouth shut, forcing himself to calm down, he would just have to wait and see.

Sugoroku shouted to attract his attention, motioning towards the bags that he had pulled from the claim for them, Ryou already helping him carry them to the car as Bakura just watched. Yugi smiled as he saw that Ryou was muttering something under his breath, probably about how useless Bakura was and how much trouble the man would be in when they got home.

He squeezed Yami's hand, feeling his balance return the gesture, unable to wipe the smile off of his face as they walked out into the sunlight.

END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, there's technically one more part to Yami and Yugi's story, but it doesn't quite fit with the rest of Don't Fear the Reaper, so it's been posted separately from the rest of the fic. For those of you who want to see Yami and Yugi a while after this (and a sex scene between the two of them), go here: http://spiritwriting.livejournal.com/65129.html


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